


Big Bad Wolf

by Elizabeth_Winchester



Category: The Originals (TV), The Vampire Diaries & Related Fandoms, The Vampire Diaries (TV), The Vampire Diaries - L. J. Smith
Genre: Drama, F/M, Falling In Love, Fantasy, Friendship, Hybrids, Romance, Vampires, Werewolves, Witches
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-09
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:48:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 33,411
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27973933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elizabeth_Winchester/pseuds/Elizabeth_Winchester
Summary: Victoria Fell knew that her friends were hiding something from her. But she never would have guessed just how life-changing that secret would be or how she would never be the same after meeting a gorgeous stranger at homecoming.Starts from TVD Season 3 Episode 9Klaus Mikaelson / Original Character
Relationships: Klaus Mikaelson/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 47
Kudos: 140





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! It's been a very long time since I've written anything, so I decided to try my hand at a light/fun Klaus and OC fanfiction. It will generally follow along with the TV show, however I might make some minor changes on the way. I also wanted to refrain from using names in this chapter until the very end!
> 
> Of course, I don't own The Vampire Diaries or The Originals

She just wanted to get away from everyone. Wanted to get away from all of the secret looks, halted conversations and disappearing acts. They were her best friends and she loved them, but she couldn't ignore it anymore. They were keeping secrets from her and tonight had been the worst she had seen.

She thought about all of the strangeness and odd occurrences that had led her to the room she was in now.

The afternoon started normal enough. Getting ready with Caroline and Bonnie for their homecoming dance at the Forbes'. Sitting at Caroline's dresser putting the final touches on her hair and makeup. Her long toffee coloured locks curled and swept over her shoulder, the hint of lavender and gold eyeshadow making her light brown eyes pop and the navy cocktail dress hugging her curves in all the right places.

They had left for the school early to help Caroline with the finishing touches to the decorations. That's when oddness number one occurred. The school gym was flooded and the dance was cancelled. But then who swoops in to save the day? Tyler Lockwood. Don't get her wrong, she loved Tyler like a brother. But he had never organised anything in his life, the party always happened to just form around him. She shrugged it off and figured that Tyler just wanted any excuse to party and drink.

But then there was oddness number two. They arrived at the Lockwood's and it was packed. The party was already in full swing. People crowding the yard, drinks flowing and what looked like a freaking huge stage set up in the backyard!? And finally oddness number three. The edgy looks her friends had been having all night, the nervousness in their eyes and how they all seemed too distracted to have any fun. At least she could always count on her friend Matt to dance with and enjoy the incredible band.

But back to the room. It was just the Lockwood's study and she had been in here countless times growing up but there was something different. She looked around and realised it was the extra 'stuff' scattered around. There were bags in the corner, a few new pieces of artwork leaning against the walls and a bunch of papers on the table. It was almost as though someone was moving in. Tyler hadn't mentioned anything though, but he hadn't mentioned anything about this party either.

But now that she thought of it, shouldn't the party be dying down? It must have been late and where was Mrs Lockwood?

She had started looking more closely at the artwork on the floor when she heard someone enter the room behind her.

"I didn't realise anyone was in here." He said.

She turned and was drawn to his deep blue eyes. The euphoric look on his face making her smile in response.

"Aren't you a little old to be at a high school homecoming?" She asked, subconsciously stepping towards him.

He chuckled stepping into the room. "Oh no, I'm an old friend of the Lockwood's. I'll be staying here while I build my new family home." She realised at this point that he was holding a bottle of champagne.

"Would you share a glass with me? I'm celebrating" he asked. She nodded and joined him by the drinks cart in the corner.

He popped the bottle and she giggled, it was something about the excitement in his eyes that caused her to laugh. While he poured the golden liquid into two of the available whisky glasses, she had a quick moment to study him.

Besides the gorgeous eyes, he had curled light-brown short hair, an infectious smile, was well built, nicely dressed and she guessed to be around 21 years old despite the age joke earlier. He handed her a glass interrupting her analysis.

"What are we celebrating?" she asked.

"Let's just say that my family and I are finally free from a narcissist demon who has been hunting for what feels like centuries", he smirked. She laughed at his joke, raised her glass to his and concluded his toast with, "to being free from narcissist demons".

His eyes never left her as they both sipped their glasses.

"So love, are you enjoying your homecoming dance?" he asked as he sat down on the couch in the centre of the room. She joined him and contemplated how truthful she should be with this stranger.

She decided on honesty, "well it's definitely a step up from the school's gym and crappy speakers. But not as much as I thought." He raised an eyebrow and indicated for her to continue. "It's just that my friends have been a bit…odd all evening. Maybe odd is too harsh, a bit distracted. I mean it's senior year. It's our homecoming. All of the 'lasts' are happening this year and they don't seem to be…present."

He had a cautious look on his face as he asked, "you wouldn't happen to be friends with Elena, would you?"

"Yes," she smiled. "She's one of my best friends, how to do know Elena?"

"Tyler introduced me to some of his friends earlier this evening." He remained cautious, looking for recognition or knowledge in her eyes. But there was nothing. No hint of knowing, no nervousness at being in the same room as the big bad wolf. This was a girl who had been left out of the inner circle and was blissfully unaware of what her friends knew or really were.

The more they talked the more he felt himself open up. Maybe it was the relief of staking Mikael after centuries of running, the joy of speaking to someone who didn't know and judge him or the natural ease at which he found in the presence of this girl. But whatever it was, he was enjoying himself.

She could feel it too. She was a kind honest person by nature, but the safety she felt being with this stranger allowed her to let out the worries she had been feeling lately. As the clocked ticked on, they found themselves moving onto lighter conversations. How they liked to enjoy their time, favourite places in Mystic Falls and aspirations for the future. They had just broached the latter subject when she confessed, "sometimes I don't know what I want to do with my life. I feel this…pressure… to build a life for myself in Mystic Falls. To staying close to home, close to my dad. It's not that he's said it out loud or mentioned it or anything, but I can tell that he's worried I'll leave and never return. After mum disappeared, I'm all he has. Well, besides Aunt Meredith. But it's not the same." She sighed.

He watched as she glanced down at her empty glass. They had finished the bottle of champagne quite a while ago. "I might not have known you for long. But I'll let you in on a little secret, there's a whole world out there waiting for you, great cities and art and music, genuine beauty, and it would be an inequality to keep you from it, love. You can have it all and should."

His words captured her. She could see it, hear it, feel it and tase it all in her mind. The adventure she craved. It wouldn't be until later that evening when she was drifting off to sleep, she would realise that she had included him in these fantasies.

What she did realise in that moment, was just how close they had gotten. Her eye flickered down to his lips. She was just about to lean in when her phone started ringing. She jumped slightly at the interruption and answered the call before it rang out.

"Hello?" She had forgotten to look at who was calling before answering.

"Hey! I'm just about to leave and wanted to see if you were home already or needed a ride?" Matt asked. "I can't remember if I saw you leave."

She smiled at how thoughtful her friend was. "No, I'm still here. I've just been…making a new friend. I'd love a ride home, but what time is it?" She asked more to herself, before removing the phone from her ear and quickly glancing at the time then returning it.

She was shocked at what her phone displayed. When had it gotten so late, or early technically she thought.

"If you're ready, I can drive around and pick you up out the front?" Matt suggested. She agreed and ended the call.

"I guess this is goodnight then, friend," he said starting to stand.

She stood as well, "yes, it was lovely to meet you." She offered her hand, "I don't think I ever introduced myself. I'm Victoria Fell."

He took her hand and instead of shaking it, he raised it to his lips. He hesitated for a split second before saying, "I'm Niklaus, but you can call me Nik".


	2. Chapter 2

Victoria opened her eyes to the incessant buzzing of her mobile phone vibrating on her bedside table. The unexpected bright sun streaming through her window however had other plans and caused them to shut quickly as an annoyed groan slipped from her lips.  
  
She ignored the buzzing, eyes remaining shut for a moment. Preferring to picture a certain stranger and his dazzling blue eyes. Although he wasn't really a stranger she thought, knowing that the man with the alluring British accent had a name. _You can call me Nik_ , whispered through her mind.  
  
The buzzing stopped.  
  
When it started back up again, just as incessant as before, Victoria knew she should probably answer it. Reaching over to grab her phone, she shouldn't have been surprised at the name that appeared.  
  
"Morning Caroline," she said while getting out of bed and putting the phone on speaker. There would be no point trying to return to sleep after this. "Morning? It's the afternoon! Where have you been? Why weren't you answering your phone?" Caroline's voice demanded through the speakers on the phone.  
  
Victoria sighed. Growing up Caroline had always been protective of her friends, but in the past six months something had changed. Victoria wasn't sure what, but the protective streak now boarded on paranoia with Caroline always fearing the worst to have happened. What Victoria couldn't understand is why. It's Mystic Falls, nothing bad ever happens here.  
  
"I was sleeping Care. I got home pretty late last night and slept through your calls." Although Victoria was a little annoyed at her friend's possessiveness she realised that maybe there could be a valid cause for concern after all Caroline is the daughter of the local Sheriff. "Wait did something happen last night? Was there another animal attack?   
Your mum didn't think I was missing or something, did she?". Even though it had been months since the last animal attack, it was all that came to mind.  
  
"My mum? Animal attack? What no. I just…" there was a slight pause. "I just lost track of you last night and wanted to make sure you got home safe. Where did you end up for most of the night? It's not like you to stay out at all hours."  
  
Victoria smiled at the thought of Nik. "Well I ended up talking to a guy for most of the night" she paused for Caroline's squeal of excitement.  
  
"Oh my god Vee, you have to tell me everything." All previous concerns now unimportant and forgotten for both girls.  
  
"Of course, but I'm in desperate need of a coffee. Meet me at the Mystic Grill?" Victoria asked. Caroline excitedly agreed and they made plans to meet in 30 minutes. Giving Victoria just enough time to quickly shower, get dressed and drive to the main centre of town.  
  
Victoria was walking across the Town Square towards the Mystic Grill when an out of character thought crossed her mind. She wanted to keep some details about Niklaus to herself. She subconsciously played with the small oval locket necklace she always wore. It had become a nervous habit of hers, ever since Elena gave it to her as a gift during junior year. There was something special about her night with Niklaus and although she felt guilty about not sharing everything with Caroline (as they had done since they were children), she realised that Caroline had been holding out on her so why couldn't she do the same.  
  
Victoria had settled on her decision just as she walked up to the Mystic Grill and found Caroline sitting at one of the tables outside. Caroline smiled and greeted her with a wonderful, "I ordered you a cappuccino in the biggest mug they have."  
  
Victoria smiled and sat opposite her best friend. She could see how excited Caroline was, bursting with questions about Victoria's mystery man. "Before you start Care," Victoria interrupted as she saw a question start to form on Caroline's lips. "There's one thing I was to keep to myself…for now." She could see the disappointed look starting to show on Caroline's face, so she softened the news with a joke.  
  
"I mean I don't want you to start Facebook stalking him or following anyone around town." Both girls laughed remembering the time Caroline convinced Victoria and Bonnie to spy on Elena and Matt's first date in freshmen year.  
  
"What should I call him then? I can't keep thinking of him as 'homecoming boy'," Caroline asked.  
  
Victoria giggled, "although that does have a certain charm, let's call him…N." That was all Caroline needed to launch into her barrage of questions. Both girls spent the next hour drinking their coffees and going through the events of their evenings. But what both girls didn't know was just how much they were keeping from each other. Caroline hiding that she had been injected with vervain by Tyler and missed most of the homecoming event. Victoria electing not to share how open her conversations with Niklaus had been.  
  
Victoria had just started asking Caroline about her plans for her upcoming 18th birthday when she was distracted by Bonnie and Elena joining them at their table. It wasn't long before Victoria was retelling her restrained version of last nights events to the new arrivals and fending off enthusiastic questions left, right and centre from all three of her closest friends.  
  
When it was getting close to dinner time, the four friends said their goodbyes and went their separate ways.  
  
Victoria had just arrived home and was taking off her shoes in the hallway when she felt her phone vibrate in her back pocket. It was an unknown number. She thought about letting it ring out after the day she had just had keeping half-truths from her friends, but something made her answer, "hello?"  
  
"Hello love, it's Nik. I got your phone number from Tyler, I really enjoyed our chat last night."  
  
Victoria smiled at the voice through the phone, "so did I, I was hoping I would get a chance to talk to you again. Maybe bump into you again at Tyler's."  
  
Niklaus grinned to himself, there had been a small part of him worried that what he felt during their conversations had been one-sided. It wasn't every day he met someone that he could freely talk to with no anterior motives or manipulation, to simply be just Nik. "I think we can do one better than that. How about dinner Friday night? I can pick you up at 7 o'clock?"  
  
"That would be perfect," Victoria replied while her dad shouted 'dinners ready' from the kitchen.  
  
"I'm sorry, I need to go."  
  
"Not a problem, love. I look forward to our date on Friday."  
  
With that they hung up, both excited by the prospect of Friday.  
  


* * *

  
As fate would have it, the week did speed by fairly quickly for both parties. For Victoria, it was days filled with classes and evenings with homework as usual. Victoria did notice though how tired and flustered Bonnie was becoming as the week went on. Bonnie assured her it was a few sleepless night and uneasy nightmares. Standard stuff, nothing for Victoria to worry about.  
  
For Niklaus, it was scouring Mystic Falls for Stefan and the lost coffins containing his family members. While not uneventful, the hunt did make time pass very quickly for the hybrid.  
  
But it was on Tuesday when Caroline found out about the date. Victoria had been trying to keep it in for as long as possible but was so nervous about what to wear that she reluctantly asked for her best friends help. They were standing by their lockers (situated next to each other of course), putting away books for the day when Caroline summarised, "so you have this epic long night of talking and the very next day he tracks down your number from a mutual friend" (Victoria was very careful to stop herself from mentioning Tyler or giving any clues as to who the mutual friend was. She knew if Caroline found out that there would be one more person for her to interrogate for information.) "calls you and sets up a date to see and speak to you again this Friday!". "Well yes, the seeing and the speaking generally go hand in hand on dates," Victoria joked.  
  
Caroline laughed in response, "but you get my meaning, he's totally into you. Like big time. It's so sweet and I definitely appreciate how direct he's being. It kind of the opposite you are when it comes to boys!"  
  
"Hey, I've dated!" Victoria defended as they walked down the hallway towards the student car park. Caroline rolled her eyes, "I know, but Vee you never really go any further than that. There's always some reason or excuse as you why you don't think it will work."  
  
"I know, I know," Victoria admitted. "But this time it's different, I don't have any of those hesitations or off gut feelings. Which is why I'm freaking out over what to wear? What if I wear something too casual, something too formal or what if I need to avoid open-toed shoes!?"  
  
Caroline giggled seeing a new side of Victoria she had never really seen before. Victoria was right Caroline thought, this time it was different.  
  
They had just hopped into Caroline's car when she offered a simple solution to all of Victoria's worries. "You have his number, what if you just text him?"  
  
"Just text him?" Victoria squeaked.  
  
"Yes, just text him and ask if there's anything in particular you should wear for Friday."  
  
Victoria thought on it for a moment and realised just how silly she had been, "you're right. I'm overthinking it. I should just text him. Thank you for being the voice of reason." Caroline smiled, "well usually our roles are reversed and you've given me a lot of excellent advice in the past."  
  
It was starting to feel like old times for the two girls, like a pre-senior year conversation that would have most definitely taken place as how Caroline had described, with Victoria calming Caroline down and offering the boy advise. Victoria was suddenly glad that she had asked Caroline for help and was happy that even though all the oddness they could still talk boys. If all went well on Friday's date, Victoria promised to herself that she would share everything with her best friend.  
  
Victoria waited until she was home and sitting on the comfort of her bed before preparing the text message to Nik. She had re-written it for the third time when she scolded herself and muttered, "stop being so silly."  
  
She deleted everything she had written and on the fourth version wrote without thinking and let whatever felt most natural to come. She ended up with a simple message conveying an adequate amount of excitement for Friday's date before quickly moving onto asking for an indication of what to wear. She hit send and laid back on her bed letting out a sigh of relief. She was surprised when her phone promptly vibrated next to her indicating that she had received a message. Victoria smiled at the message before her and the returned excitement for Friday as well as the guidance on something suitable for dinner at the fine dining restaurant one town over.  
  
Victoria had just the dress in mind.  


* * *

  
Victoria twisted in front of the mirror to give herself one last look over. She loved this dress. The light blue colour, the all-over lace detail that came down to her knees (while the underdress of the same colour finished at her thighs), the delicate spaghetti straps, and the confidence it inspired in her when she wore it. She matched the dress with nude heels, clutch and cardigan (in case it got cold later). And completed the look with natural make-up and voluminous beachy waves.  
  
She saw that it was nearly 7 pm and made her way downstairs to say goodbye to her father, who gushed at how beautiful (and secretly how mature) she looked. It was at this moment the doorbell rang announcing the arrival of her date. She said goodnight to her father and left him in the living room with his book.  
  
Victoria took a small nervous breath before opening the door. However, when her eyes locked with his all nerves disappeared and all she felt was excitement for the evening ahead. She stepped towards him and closed the door behind her, never taking her eyes off him.  
  
"You look beautiful," he said stepping forward and offering his arm. Victoria blushed, putting her arm through his. "Thank you," Victoria replied as they walked towards his car. Niklaus opened the car door for Victoria and closed it behind her. As he walked around to his side of the car, Victoria mused at how much she was enjoying Niklaus' chivalrous actions. It was the closest she had come to feeling like she was being courted.  
  
The space between them felt comfortable on the way to dinner and Victoria found herself answering a few questions from Niklaus about her week, school and friends. He took a keen interest when Victoria mentioned she had been a little worried about Bonnie and her nightmares. However, Victoria didn't notice anything odd about this and appreciated his concern for her friend.  
  
When they arrived at the restaurant, Niklaus pulled up to the valet and made his way around the front of the car to open the door for Victoria. He again offered her his arm and they made their way towards the restaurant. However, instead of walking towards the front doors, Niklaus led Victoria down a smaller lantern-lit path around the side of the building and through the gardens. After a short walk, they came upon a beautifully lit gazebo with a dining table set up in the middle.   
  
Niklaus pulled out a chair for Victoria as she sat down and looked around in wonder noticing the smaller details. The careful placement of candles around the gazebo. The soft sounds of classical music playing from the gazebo speakers. The proximity to the restaurant, close enough for service to continue as usual, but far enough that it gave them complete privacy.   
  
As he took his seat, Niklaus watched as Victoria took everything in, greatly enjoying her reaction and the happiness he saw on her face.  
  
"Champagne?" he asked, lifting the bottle from the ice bucket next to him.  
  
Victoria looked around, "it looks like there's no one around to ask for ID, so yes, thank you." Niklaus chuckled often forgetting the law of the current time. "I'm sure I could persuade them otherwise," he said. Victoria looked over as Niklaus poured the champagne into appropriate champagne flutes. Seeing his charming smirk, the confident way he held himself and the (what she was certain) designer suit he wore, she was sure he was capable of persuading anyone of almost anything. However, she replied in jest with, "I don't know, I think the three years missing from my license might be too much of a difference to the legal drinking age, even for you."  
  
They were momentarily interrupted by two waiters arriving with their entrée's. "I hope you don't mind, I took the liberty of ordering when I booked. From what I could get out of Tyler, you don't have any allergies," Niklaus stated.  
  
"No I don't," Victoria confirmed and she didn't mind that he had selected the food. She was more pre-occupied with a new sneaky suspicion that his words raised. "So I guess you have been making the most out of your stay at the Lockwood's. Sounds like it's been very… informative," Victoria joked.  
  
Niklaus grinned, "you could say that. But it was more an insatiable desire to learn more about the breath-taking woman I met." He looked deep into her eyes, the playful smile replaced by something more seductive. Victoria blushed, she wasn't used to hearing these types of compliments. While she liked the feeling it gave her, it also made her a little flustered. So she decided to bring the conversation back to safer territory.  
  
"How long do you think you will be staying at the Lockwood's?" she asked. "Only another week or two. We started building this week and I only need to remain at the Lockwood's until a few of the rooms are done. I'm much too fond of my privacy to remain there any longer," he responded.  
  
"A few weeks! You must have a pretty large crew working on it."  
  
"Yes, quite a few builders, tradespeople and… assistants," he smirked thinking about the hybrids he had at his disposal. "They are also very attuned to my preferences. They know how invested I am in getting it built and ready for my family."  
  
"Do you have any siblings?" Victoria asked opening a conversation that would last well past the entrée stage of their dinner and into the main course.  
  
Niklaus talked as openly as possible about his four siblings, their relationship to one another, their personalities and drives. He even joked about some of the grievances he had with each of them in the past (simplified and broad versions to be sure, but with a basis of truth). Victoria could see the love he has for each of his family members, he just showed it in his own way. She couldn't begrudge him that, families could be difficult. After her mum disappeared a few years ago, there was so much speculation around whether she just left or if there was something more sinister, that it caused a divide between her father and mother's side of the family. Now they never really see her mother's side anymore.  
  
What shocked Victoria most about their conversation was the heartbreak Niklaus had experienced in his family. He shared the coldness from his father (she suspected it was more than just 'coldness' but kept it to herself), the indifference of his mother and how losing his youngest brother, Henrik, destroyed their family. Victoria didn't realise it but at one point she took one of his hands in hers, hoping to provide what little comfort she could.  
  
A moment passed in silence after Niklaus finished speaking and Victoria felt herself responding to his grief and sadness with her own. She told him about her mother, how scared and distraught she felt when she disappeared. How they still don't know to this day what happened. She gave a sad laugh when she spoke about how Caroline and herself tried sneaking into the sheriffs' office out of desperation for information and the trouble that ensued afterwards. She felt him gently squeezing her hand, receiving the same comfort she had offered him.  
  
They had their final interruption for the evening by the waiters bringing the last course, dessert.  
  
"We seem to have forgotten that this is a first date love and these are likely far too serious conversations to be having on a first date," Niklaus softly spoke. Without hesitation, Victoria honestly replied, "it feels like I've known you a lifetime."  
  
Niklaus for once in his long life didn't know what to say. He had never felt this way about anyone in existence, at one point in time he might have thought he felt this way about his first love Tatia, but he knew now that was an infatuation and insignificant in comparison. He had also certainty never dared to hope that one day he would find someone who would also return those feelings, but he could feel himself starting to now one small piece at a time.  
  
Dinner ended and they relaxed into a comfortable silence on the car ride home. Both were lost in thought over what each other had shared tonight and the connection growing between them.  
  
It wasn't until they were standing on the Fell's porch that they spoke again. "Thank you Nik for a truly wonderful evening," Victoria broke the silence.  
  
She stepped towards Niklaus not wanting to finish the evening making the same mistake as last week and leaned towards him making her intentions clear. There was nothing more Niklaus wanted at that moment. He quickly closed the gap and brought his lips down on hers. Victoria could feel herself melt against his chest as his muscular arms wrapped themselves around her waist. While gentle at first, the kiss continued to build and Victoria felt herself get lost in it as she began to wrap her arms around his neck pulling herself closer.  
  
When he did eventually remove his lips from hers, she was stunned by the intense desire she felt to recapture those lips and pull herself back against him. It startled her so much that all she could manage was a quiet "goodnight" before entering her home and quickly closing the door.

She leaned her back against the wood and couldn't help but laugh, she definitely didn't make the same mistake as homecoming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all of the reads, bookmarks and my first few comments - I'm really enjoying writing again and can't wait to continue sharing this little fantasy with you!
> 
> Also after a lovely reader informed me that there is a minor character in S7/8 called Violet Fell I decided to change our protagonist's name to Victoria. I didn't want there to be any confusion and it kinda bugged me :P


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again for all of the support for this story, I hope you enjoy this next chapter. 
> 
> Quick note, anyone who read the previous chapters prior to 14.12.20 might notice that Violet has changed to Victoria. After a lovely reader informed me that there is a minor character in S7/8 called Violet Fell I decided to change our protagonist's name. I didn't want there to be any confusion and it kinda bugged me.

Victoria bounded down the stairs taking them two at a time. Her homework was finished for the weekend, she had a girls night to look forward to and the enjoyable memory of Friday night to repeat in her mind.

She bopped along to the pop song playing on the radio in the kitchen as she poured a cup of coffee for herself.

"You're in a good mood this morning," her father smiled as he entered the kitchen and leaned against the island bench.

She smiled in response. "It's a beautiful day, the sun is shining. Who wouldn't be in a good mood?'

Her father chuckled. "And this good mood wouldn't have anything to do with a certain date on Friday night would it?"

"Perhaps… is this your way of asking for all of the juicy details? Like oh-em-gee, his eyes are SO dreamy and SO blue."

"Nope, nooo. That is already too much information." Father and daughter smiled enjoying their banter.

"You can save all of that for your get together with your friends. Are you girls staying at Elena's tonight?"

"Caroline's actually. Are you going somewhere?" She noticed the small backpack on the floor.

"Just a hike with the Maxwell's, we haven’t been since they caught the beast behind the animal attacks." He gave her a hug farewell. "If you're not too busy, can you stop by and see your Aunt today? I don't want her to forget about dinner tonight."

"Every Sunday is dinner with Meredith, what makes you think she'll forget?"

"Call it a brothers intuition," he laughed as he backed out of the kitchen.

"I'll stop by on her lunch break," she called out to him down the hallway and she heard a distant 'thank you' in response and the front door closing.

Victoria continued her morning with her favourite Sunday routine. A jog around the neighbourhood, a relaxing shower and a stroll down the main street to buy a takeaway coffee and chocolate croissant from The Town House Café.

She had just finished her coffee when she walked up to the front entrance of Mystic Falls' only hospital. She made her way down the familiar hallways, towards where she could expect her Aunt to be. What she didn't expect was Mr Saltzman and Jeremy Gilbert filling out paperwork at the reception desk.

Jeremy spotted her first. "Hey Victoria!"

"Hey, Jeremy. Hi Mr Saltzman. Is everything ok?" She glanced over at the paperwork.

"Hello, Victoria. Yes, of course. Just a small…accident, nothing too dreadful." Her teacher said with a strained smile.

"Oh, that's…good. I'm here to see my Aunt, so I'll see you both at school...I guess."

Alaric nodded and returned to his paperwork, while Jeremy gave an easy smile and small wave farewell. Victoria continued down the hallway. It was at the next nurse's station that she found her Aunt checking a patients chart.

"Hey you," Meredith greeted as soon as she saw her niece. "What brings you here?"

"Dad wanted me to remind you about Sunday dinner."

"Oh, yes, right. It's Sunday, of course."

Victoria quietly laughed at her dad's previous intuition.

"But it will just be you and dad tonight. I'm crashing at Caroline's and catching up with the girls."

"That'll be fun! But don't think I want to miss hearing everything about your date Friday night. I have exactly…" Meredith looked down at her watch, "…eleven minutes for a coffee break. Think you can give me the highlights while I grab one from the break room?"

Wrapping her arm through her Aunt's they made their way to the break room and Victoria filled her in on all the best details of her date with Nik, well as much as she could in eleven minutes.

* * *

Victoria sat on her bed and texted Caroline to let her know she would be making her way over soon. She had just finished packing an overnight bag and grabbed everything she would need for school the next day.

She mentally braced herself for the onslaught of questions she assumed she would receive from her three friends this evening. But she meant what she thought earlier in the week with Caroline - she would start to let them in on everything.

Not only did she yearn to share all of the 'juicy' details as she called it this morning. But she also needed the support of her friends to tell her that she wasn't crazy for the strong feelings were already starting to have for Nik. She knew it was insane how quickly she was falling for him, but she couldn't stop herself and realised at that moment that she didn't want to stop herself. Secretly she was a romantic at heart. She had always wished for a love at first sight moment. The cliché of seeing someone from across a room, eye's meeting and knowing that that was it. It was love.

Maybe that's why the previous boys she had dated were never enough. Between the unimaginative dates, the sloppy kisses or the awkward first (and only time) she had had sex, there was always something missing. She had never felt that instant spark. Sure she had found plenty of guys attractive and even went as far as sleeping with someone she thought she had liked (only to realise later that it had really been a subconscious social pressure she felt), but it was never all-consuming. It never felt like you couldn't breathe properly without them. And while her eighteen year old adult brain comprehended just how immature, unrealistic and quite possibly dangerous that line of thinking was. There was that secret part of her that had pined for the teenage fantasy of true love and now revelled in how quickly she was starting to fall for Nik.

Victoria was tempted to text Nik but decided the best way to sort out her true feelings separate from the fantasy was to share it all with her friends. So she grabbed her stuff and walked to Caroline's house, only a few blocks away.

Victoria let herself in as she arrived at the Forbes' house. She left her overnight bag in the hallway and yelled out a greeting to her friends who she could hear in the living room.

"Hellooooo"

"Hey, you're here finally!" Caroline said while rising off the couch to hug her best friend. Victoria also hugged Bonnie, who was sitting on an adjacent armchair before joining Caroline on the couch.

"Where's Elena? She usually always beats me here," Victoria asked concerned.

"Oh, Elena's not able to make it. She's decided to stay in with Jeremy and Ric tonight," Caroline supplied.

"Of course, I saw Mr Saltzman at the hospital today. There was some sort of…accident?"

"Nothing major…but Elena just wanted to be there with them tonight."

The girls relaxed into a conversation about their respective weekends. Victoria purposely avoided mentioning her date, but it wasn't long until Caroline interjected. "Ok I can't wait any longer, how was Friday night? Tell us everything!"

Victoria laughed, "I wondered how long it would take for you to crack. Less than 20 minutes by my timing."

Bonnie joined her laughter, "but seriously. We've been dying to hear everything."

"Ok, ok. Well if I had to sum it up in one word…"

"Screw one word, we want details!" Caroline blurted out. "Like what did you wear? How did you do your hair? What did he wear? Did he pick you up? Start from the start and no skimping!"

"Yes, mam," Victoria gave a little mock salute to Caroline. The three girls laughed.

"I wore the light blue lace dress, the one the comes down to my knees but the base of the dress is shorter, you know the one. I also styled my hair with loose wavy curls AND complimented it with natural makeup."

"N did pick me up. He wore a suit and oh I wish I had a photo to show you, that man knows how to pull one-off. He has the most captivating, sometimes intense, but really amazing blue eyes and this smile that just pulls you in," Victoria grinned at her friend's obvious enjoyment of her detailed descriptions.

"I wonder if I've ever seen him around town…" Caroline wondered out loud trying to piece together her friend's description. Victoria let out an exaggerated dreamy smile enjoying the drama in her story-telling. "Well, you would definitely remember hearing him. He has this British accent that has no right being as sexy as it is."

Victoria was about to continue her story when she was muted by the shift in the room. She noticed the way Caroline had frozen and how the colour had seemed to drain from Bonnie's face. Both of her friends looked like remarkable impressions of statues.

The silence was finally broken by Bonnie. "Vee, what does N stand for?"

Victoria paused, confused by what she now recognised as fear on her friend's faces.

"You said his name starts with N, what does it stand for?"

"It's Nik. His name is Nik, well Nikklaus I don't really…" Victoria was about to say more but was stopped by Caroline's wide eyes and muttering of 'no no no no' into her hands. While Caroline was in denial, Bonnie was the polar opposite. She abruptly stood anger radiating off her as she paced behind Victoria and the couch.

Victoria didn't know how to respond. Why on earth were her friends reacting this way? It was Bonnie's unexpected outburst of "I'm going to kill him!" that made Victoria jump up herself and voice her thoughts, "what!? What are you talking about?"

As Caroline came back to her senses, she realised that she needed to get this situation under control. She joined her friends standing and calmly spoke. "Vee, I don't know how to say this. But you can't see him anymore. Trust me you need to cut ties and never talk to him again."

"This is a joke, right? Some big practical joke, because I've found someone I actually like, right?"

Caroline sighed, saddened by what she had to say. "If there was ever an excuse to not date someone, then Klaus is it. He's dangerous."

"How can you say that. You don't know him. You haven't even met him."

"Oh, yes we have," Bonnie jumped in.

"When? Where?" Victoria turned facing Bonnie, feeling her shock transform into frustration.

"Just around," Caroline stammered bringing Victoria's attention back to her best friend.

Victoria felt like her brain was struggling to process what was happening. She had so many questions, she didn't know where to begin. Then she realised it was just like all those other times. When they told her not to worry, everything's fine. Just like when they left suddenly the decade dance early with a vague excuse of Bonnie feeling unwell. Or when Elena and Stefan had a messy breakup over the summer break and while Elena didn’t want to talk about it, she insisted Victoria stay away from him and call her if she saw Stefan around town.

"No Care, I'm not doing this anymore. You don't think I don't know you've been keeping secrets? I've turned a blind eye too many times because I thought…no I hoped that my friends would confide in me on what’s been going on. But this? You can't just tell me to stop seeing someone and not give me a reason." There was an uneasy silence. "So give me one good reason, right now."

Victoria saw Caroline's eyes flicker towards Bonnie. Bonnie seemed to shrug, 'it's up to you'. Whatever excuse Victoria was expecting Caroline to come up with, it definitely wasn't what came next.

"He's a vampire."

More silence. "A vampire?" Victoria eventually asked.

"Well technically a hybrid, so a werewolf cross vampire. And technically an original…" Caroline muttered the last part.

"What are you talking about? This isn't Forks Care, we're not in some fantasy book."

"Actually, we sort of are." Bonnie's anger had finally subsided. She removed one of her rings from her fingers and placed it on the palm of her hand while closing her eyes in concentration. To Victoria's astonishment, the ring started to hover above Bonnie's hand.

"I'm a witch," Bonnie opens her eyes relieved to finally let her final friend in on her secret.

Caroline hesitated, afraid her announcement would be too much for her friend. But seeing the acceptance in Victoria's eyes and a hint of what she thought was relief in her eyes, she made up her mind. However, she cautioned "Vee, don't be scared." Before tapping into a smidge of her bloodlust. She could feel the pulsating veins appear her face, knowing they would be showing black at that very moment, "I'm a vampire."

Victoria couldn't help it, she stood a step back.

"Please don't be scared Vee, you're my best friend. I would never hurt you." The black veins disappeared and Caroline appeared as normal as ever. But Victoria could hear the regret in her best friends voice.

"But you have hurt people?" She asked.

"Yes. There was this one person when I first turned. I couldn't control it, it was the carnival and there were so many new sounds and bright lights and smells and the blood…I just couldn't stop myself..."

Victoria remembered the carnival. Tyler nearly got into a fight with someone, Elena was looking after everything and Caroline was in the hospital. Her eyes widened. "But you were in the hospital...you were fine after the accident. I saw you in there, you were your perky normal self. You weren't at the carnival."

"I came much later…after the incident, we left pretty quickly. Stefan had to get me away from there and Elena had to help Bonnie." Caroline was so caught up in the memory of her first kill that she didn't realise the additional secret she had released.

"Wait, why did Elena have to help Bonnie?" It suddenly dawned on Victoria. "If Elena was there then she knows and if Stefan was with you afterwards he knows." But she could feel that it wasn't just it. It felt like she was on the precipice of something larger.

"How many people know Care?" she quietly asked. Suddenly scared to know the answer. When all she received was silence she turned to Bonnie. "How many Bonnie?"

Bonnie looked nervous. She carefully chose her words as she spoke. "Vampires and other mystical creatures aren’t new to Mystic Falls. They've come and gone over the centuries and there are a few…families…founding families… that know the truth." Victoria froze at the implication. "Then there are others like Elena and myself who find out either from what we are or who we know," Bonnie gently inclined her head in Caroline's direction. "The Salvatore's are…in a similar situation. Stefan and his older brother Damon know," Caroline continued on Bonnie's behalf.

Caroline pushed on. "Matt found out when I had to heal him with my blood. And Tyler…Tyler found out when he triggered his werewolf curse."

Victoria unfroze, "Tyler's a werewolf?" She couldn't believe it. Besides Caroline, Tyler was her oldest friend. Her surrogate big brother growing up. The person she would play and have adventures with to escape the boringness of community events, a staple of the Lockwood and Fell households growing up. She couldn't believe that he would hide something so big from her. She felt the threat of tears.

"So what you're saying is that my closest friends. Friends, who I think of as family didn't trust me to keep their secret or didn't think I could handle it?" Victoria asked voice cracking. She didn’t know how much more she could take.

Both girls looked at Victoria with a mixture of sadness and guilt. "No, we just wanted to keep you safe and we thought…we thought the best way was to protect you was to…not tell you," Caroline attempted to console.

"And that's all we want to do now," she continued. "Klaus is dangerous, you need to stay away from him."

Victoria thought about Klaus - the name felt strange in her mind. The night they met, their date, their kiss…and while her mind was able to transform him into an unfamiliar monster, twist his charm into arrogance, his confidence into brashness and his strength into force. That's all it was. An unfamiliar picture forced together in her mind. The Klaus that she had spent time with and had come to know wasn't that. The man who made her feel safe, listened to her, comforted her wasn't a monster. He was her Nik.

Victoria wasn't sure what to say. All she could feel was that she needed to be alone with her thoughts. "I need…I need to go…" she stuttered, grabbing her bags and making her way to the front door.

"Vee, wait, please. Let's just talk this through a bit more," Caroline pleaded. Victoria opened the front door and paused. She could hear Bonnie telling Caroline to let her go. She turned when Bonnie addressed her directly, "it's ok if you need time to think. Just don't take your necklace off or invite him into your house."

On seeing Victoria's confused face, she continued. "Your locket contains a herb called vervain, vampires can't control your mind if you're wearing it or ingest it. They also can't enter your home unless someone living there invites them in. I beg of you, don't invite him in. Not until you know everything."

Victoria nodded slightly and left. Her walk home was spent connecting the dots of what she experienced in the past eight or so months. Bonnie was right, she didn't know everything but she knew enough. Enough to link parts together, like Tyler's exhaustion that she thought had been random. But actually happened after every full moon.

Now that she knew the pattern she could see it.

She was nearly home when something else clicked and fell into place. Bonnie had said some families knew the truth about the supernatural, but not just any families. Founding families.

Victoria rushed up the steps to her porch and quickly opened the door. She could hear her dad in the kitchen preparing dinner, but that wasn't her destination. Instead, she made her way to the living room where she knew she would be going over notes from her shift while waiting for dinner.

Her Aunt looked up, surprised at her entrance. "Oh hey, Vee, we weren't expecting you for dinner."

"We need to talk… about vampires, witches, werewolves and everything bloody else that goes bump in the night."


	4. Chapter 4

Victoria sat in her sweatshirt and leggings at the window seat in her bedroom, staring aimlessly at the outside world, journal in hand. She remembered when Elena and she bought the matching journal's. Elena had enthusiastically proclaimed that she would write in hers every day. Victoria had nodded in agreeance. Bonnie had laughed and Caroline just rolled her eyes at how silly it all was. Victoria had only lasted a few weeks, but as far as she knew Elena still wrote in hers to this day.

Victoria had fished it out from the back of her desk draw and considered writing in it for the first time in years, but remembered why she stopped. She preferred to sort through, process and reflect on the information in her headfirst. If she started writing it would just come out as a big jumbled mess. And when she did straighten it all out in her mind and make a decision, she no longer felt like writing it down.

The mess currently in her mind was still at the processing stage. It had been that way for a few days.

She remembered the lie she told her dad about why she had come home early from Caroline's and how she was feeling unwell. Then waiting in her room until her Aunt Meredith showed after dinner. She hated lying to her dad, especially since her mum disappeared, but she didn't know if he knew the truth. Her Aunt confirmed later that night, that her father had been told the same stories as the other members of her family had when they became adults, got shown the same family journals, but simply did not believe. He had chalked it all up to one big joke and never thought of it as anything more than the mad family stories told to 'scare straight' the younger generations.

That night she only scraped the surface with her Aunt. It was the next day, on one of her Aunt's rare day's off that she brought the journals, news clippings and stories with her. They had sat on Victoria's bed for hours going through the history of Mystic Falls and the Fell's involvement since it was founded. She had been angry with her Aunt at first. But Meredith was patient and calmly spoke about the family and different reactions they had all gone through over the years. With vampires being more relevant in pop culture than ever before, Meredith genuinely believed that Victoria would have reacted the same as her father and been a non-believer. She did admit though, that when Victoria turned 18 a few months ago she should have been told as all the Fell's were (if they hadn't already discovered the family secrets by that age).

Once Victoria had moved passed the anger, her Aunt had been methodical and thorough, covering centuries worth of information in that first day. When Victoria has commented on as much, Meredith's only response had been, "we Fells are notorious busy-bodies."

And she was right. The Fell's had always been involved from the start and if they weren't involved then they made it their business to know everything. Thomas Fell, Victoria's great great grandfather, was a founder of Mystic Falls and instrumental in George Lockwood's plan to exterminate vampires from their town, offering his beloved church as the location to burn them all. His wife, Honoria, cultivated and grew what was Mystic Fall's first yield of vervain after receiving the seeds from a Bennet witch. Her great grandfather, Tobias, and uncle, Logan, were town reporters and active members of the council providing a close watch on the events of the town, both commonplace and supernatural.

Even her Aunt kept track of the supernatural beings in town. She had confessed to Victoria about using vampire blood to heal patients, "I cheat. I'm a doctor and I hate it when people die, so when I have the ability to do something about it, I do."

That had been day one, on day two they progressed to the Lockwood's and werewolves. Victoria learned that while it had been a secret to the rest of the founding families and council over the years, the Fell's had always known about the Lockwood's family secret. It had started with George Lockwood, Tobias Fell and a confessional booth one Sunday afternoon. This was particularly hard for Victoria to hear. Tyler hadn't shared anything with her. Her Aunt tried to comfort her, "he probably didn't even know himself until it happened. Mason didn't know anything about the Lockwood curse when we were dating in high school. I doubt his nephew was any different." Victoria vaguely remembered Caroline saying something along the same lines.

Victoria's mind drifted to picturing her carefree best friend. Her goofy, magnetic surrogate big brother. The star of the Timberwolves football team. She laughed to herself at the sudden memories of her cousin Tina always teasing her about her friendship with Tyler. Tina had always been jealous of how close they were and constantly trying to get Victoria to admit they were secretly dating. When that couldn't be further from the truth. They had kissed once. It was during a sleepover in middle school and they had been picked for 7-minutes in heaven. They didn't know what to do, so why not. One small kiss. It had been the most uncomfortable experience and they had both been so grossed out that they vowed to never try anything like that ever again. Although in a strange way it had brought them closer together, knowing that there was truly nothing more there than a true friendship.

Finally, they covered off the little information Meredith had on witches one morning before she had to go to work. "They play their cards close to their chest," she had said. The Fell's historically had been on good terms with the few magically gifted families in town, in particular the Bennet's. But Meredith, and to her knowledge, the other Fell's in town had little to do with Sheila Bennet before she passed and even littler with her niece, Victoria's friend, Bonnie.

It was right before Meredith had to leave for work that Victoria hesitantly approached the subject of Nik.

"Caroline called him a hybrid…and something called an original."

"I'm sorry, but I don't believe I've heard or read either of those terms before. I can leave all of this stuff here again in case you want to have another look. But I'm pretty sure nothing has been mentioned about an original or hybrid. Original usually refers to something from the beginning. The first or earliest version of something."

"I think Caroline said something about him being both. A cross between a vampire and werewolf."

Meredith raised her eyebrows in surprise. "In that case, he could be the beginning of an entirely new species. One that Mystic Fall's has never seen before." Prior to leaving she cautioned Victoria about being careful as they didn't know what they were dealing with. Victoria noticed though that she didn't forbid or instruct Victoria to not see or speak to him.

Even still Victoria didn't actually know what to say to Niklaus. She had received a few text messages from him over the past few days. But she couldn't find it in herself to respond while she was still processing. The last message she had received from him was the day before, in the afternoon after her Aunt had left for work. Victoria had been googling words such as 'hybrid' or 'vampire' but hadn't found anything useful amongst the ridiculous amount of fictional movies, books and articles when her phone buzzed.

She glanced at the name. She didn't read any further than the name.

But now, here she was. Gazing out the window, watching the quiet street from her bedroom on the second story on the right side of the house, when she saw a recognisable black car drive down the street. Nik's car.

It stopped out the front of her house. She stood to make her way downstairs, glancing at herself in the mirror quickly. She looked tired but determined to get answers. She nervously played with her necklace as she made her way down the stairs. The doorbell rang.

Victoria opened the door and there he was. Long sleeve shirt, black beaded necklace, charming smile and all.

"Ah good, you're home, love. I wasn't sure if you would be, but I wanted to talk about how we left things Friday night. I wasn't sure if I was too forward or moving too fast and when I didn't hear from you I thought we could talk." Unusual for him, Niklaus had been avoiding eye contact as he spoke. However, as soon as Victoria failed to respond, his eyes locked on hers. That's when he saw it, the look of knowledge in her eyes. The face of someone finally being let in on one very big secret. As he also recognised the hint of doubt in her eyes, his features dropped. His smile disappeared, his eyes became hard and he felt the protective persona of Klaus take hold.

"I guess this means you won't be inviting me to discuss Friday night."

Victoria stared back into his eyes. Searching. She had seen the change in him when he looked at her. She saw the cautious and defensive expression overtake his features. But she also saw the smallest hint of something, or someone, familiar. It was due to this hint, that she decided to take a leap of faith. Both metaphorical and literal by stepping out of her front door and closing it behind her.

That wasn't the response Niklaus was expecting. He also didn't expect for Victoria to slowly walk past him and begin down her porch steps. She looked back at him with an 'aren't you coming?' face and all he could do was laugh at the absurdity of it all. How did this girl keep surprising him?

Niklaus followed Victoria around the side of her house and to a small garden in the backyard. She sat at their old wooden bench seat and waited for Niklaus to join her.

The sat in silence for a moment.

"I'm guessing from the new look in your eye and the lack of communication that you finally know about your friends and me. How did it happen?"

Victoria chuckled (surprising Niklaus with her reaction yet again). "They told me to stay away from you."

An intrigued smile appeared on Niklaus' face.

"I was with Caroline and Bonnie. They figured out my date was with yourself and told me to never see or speak to you again. I guess you could say it was the straw that broke the camel's back."

Victoria played with her necklace.

"They called you an original. But I don't know what that means."

"My family started life as humans. My parents had fled the plague and the old world to start a new life. I was born here in what we now know to be Mystic Falls a thousand year's ago. It was a simpler time, we lived at peace with our neighbours. Some who turned into wolves every full moon. It wasn't until the accident with my brother Henryk that everything changed. My father was ruthless. He never wanted himself or his family to be in danger ever again. My mother was quite a gifted witch, so he begged her to turn us into what we are.

We're the oldest vampires in the world. The Original family, and from us all vampires were created."

Victoria froze, trying to process the new wave of information.

"But if you're an…Original….one of the creator's of the vampire species. Why are my friends so scared of you? Their reactions to figuring out it was you…they were so angry, so full of fear. Fear of Klaus…of you."

Niklaus contemplated for a moment, before turning his body to face Victoria. "I'm not going to lie to you, love. I have lived a long time and I have done some horrible things. Things that your mind most likely can't comprehend. There's a reason why your friends call me a monster. But my actions have always been driven by a need to protect my family or restore a part of myself that has been missing nearly my entire life.

It was just unfortunate that your friend, Elena, happened to be the doppelganger and a key ingredient to breaking the curse my mother placed on me."

"Your mother cursed you?"

"Yes. I was my mothers biggest shame and when her indiscretion came to light, that I wasn't my father's son, she cursed my werewolf genes to remain dormant with a spell. A spell that could only be broken with the blood of the doppelganger. Breaking my curse earlier this year made me the Original Hybrid. Half-vampire and half werewolf."

Niklaus almost felt guilty about what he planned to share next.

"One thing you should know about how I broke my curse. There were other ingredients necessary to break it. Other sacrifices to be made. Your friends were being very difficult, always attempting to thwart my plans. But I needed a vampire for the ritual and I always plan ahead…so I made a backup just in case. This backup so happened to be Elena's Aunt."

Victoria stood remembering Jenna's sudden and small funeral. She had grieved with Elena who had to bury not only her Aunt but her Uncle John. She had been told at the time that they had passed in another tragic car crash. Although Victoria didn't know John very well, she had known Jenna for years. Elena's fun Aunt who was off at college. Who whenever she popped in loved sharing her college adventures with the girls. Then, after Elena's parents passed she stepped up. Dropping almost everything to be there and look after Elena and Jeremy. Victoria had admired Jenna for that.

Niklaus followed Victoria as she wandered forward into the garden. "But your friends, Caroline and Tyler were safe. The others saw to that….And Tyler, I made him a hybrid like myself. I saved him from his own curse of transforming and breaking every bone in his body every full moon. Now he's spared of that pain and never has to turn ever again."

Victoria flinched, it was just another detail her friends has forgotten or missed telling her. She couldn't decide which.

Niklaus interpreted her reaction as fear and without thinking cupped her face in his hands. "Please don't be afraid. I know I don't deserve it, but believe me, sweetheart. I would never hurt you."

Victoria softened slightly in his hands, even now after everything she knew there was still a small part of her that felt safe with him. "It's not that. There's just still so much I don't know. So much I need to think about. I'm so…torn between what I continue to learn and how many lies there have been. How much has been hidden from me."

She gently removed his hands from her face, not able to give in to that small part just yet. Niklaus felt the tinge of rejection.

"I couldn't agree more, love. So many lies. Even now I find myself entangled in a plot by Stefan Salvatore. Who has stolen and is hiding my family from me."

"How is that possible?"

"As I said, I'll do what I think is best to protect my family and over the year's that has included protecting them from themselves. There was always a danger with my father hunting us over the centuries, so sometimes I would have to put them…asleep. After defeating my father, the narcissist demon, at your homecoming, I was ready to wake them. However, Stefan found them first. I've been searching for where he hid their coffins ever since."

Another train of thought came over Victoria.

"Is that why you asked me out? To see if I knew anything," she quietly inquired.

"I would be lying if I didn't say that there was a part of me that thought getting close to you could be helpful. That maybe I could learn something or gain an insight into your friend's plans. But the truth is that I was drawn to you for a much different reason."

Niklaus appreciated the faint blush that appeared on Victoria's checks. Maybe everything's not lost, after all, he thought.

"Thank you, Nik, for your honesty. But I think I need a bit more time to take in everything."

Niklaus nodded. He stepped closer. Raised her hand and stared deep into her eyes as his lips made contact, before wordlessly leaving Victoria in her garden.

She would be thinking about what she saw in his eyes all afternoon. A hint of hope.

* * *

While the talk in the garden had given Victoria a lot more to think about, it had also shaken her out of the mental processing loop she had been stuck in the past few days. She didn't know it, but she had started to piece together her feelings and make up her mind.

The next morning after her talk with Niklaus, Victoria decided she wanted to get out of the house and go for a jog. She had dressed for the occasion and made her way downstairs where she found her father at the dining table packing his briefcase.

"Good morning, how are you feeling today? You look a lot better."

"I'm starting to feel better, good enough to go for a slow jog I think."

"Oh, that's good. I'm glad your…ah…cramps and back pain have stopped…or are better…or eased…"

Victoria looked down guiltily at the lie her and her Aunt had told to get Victoria out of school for the week. It wasn't hard though, anything female related that way and her father was more than happy for her Aunt to be in charge.

Her father quickly changed the subject. "Do you think you're feeling well enough to go to school?"

"Umm, I think one more day wouldn't hurt. I'll ask…Caroline…to give me any homework I've missed."

"Ok, sounds good. I've got to go, but have a nice day." He hugged her goodbye and left for work.

Victoria was glad her father hadn't pushed her to go to school. She wasn't quite ready to see all of her friends at once just yet. Especially not on a Friday morning in the Mystic Falls High School hallways.

Victoria drank a glass of water and headed out herself for a jog around the neighbourhood. The jog gave her time to clear her head and decide that while she might not be really to see all of her friends at once, she was ready to speak to maybe just one. But which one, she thought. Her mind immediately went to her childhood friend Tyler, but all she felt was anger and bitterness. She decided that probably wasn't the best way to feel while having a conversation with him so she moved onto the next person on her mental list. Caroline. With Caroline, she felt a little bit of anger but mainly just hurt at what her best friend had kept from her. She decided that was good enough and planned to text Caroline when she arrived back home.

It took Caroline only minutes to promptly respond to Victoria's text and confirm that she would be over in a few minutes. Victoria mused to herself, a few minutes, what was Caroline going to do, fly?

However sure enough, after only a few minutes the doorbell rang. Victoria opened the door for her best friend. As she was closing it behind Caroline she noticed that Caroline's car wasn't out the front.

"How did you get here so quickly? Were you at home or something?"

"No, I ran here from school. Vampires can move really quickly. It comes in handy."

Victoria decided that she needed caffeine for this conversation and made her way to the kitchen to put on a pot of coffee. Caroline followed and automatically grabbed two mugs from the cupboard. This at least felt like a familiar routine for the girls.

While they waited for the water to heat, both girls awkwardly took up places around the kitchen. Victoria leaned up against the bench and Caroline sat opposite at one of the island benches stools.

"I'm glad you texted. I was getting really worried when you didn't show for school this week. I mean I wanted to text you, but Bonnie said I should give you some space."

Victoria nodded, "she was right. Space has been good. It's been a lot to analyse. My Aunt has been taking me through the Fell's history and everything she knows. But I feel like there's still a lot to learn."

The coffee pot was ready, so Victoria filled up both mugs and handed one to Caroline.

"Like this, how do you even consume coffee? Like can you even taste it?"

"I guess it really is all like magic. I can eat a little, but prefer not to and there's no real point. I can also drink. Like coffee for example. The good thing about coffee is the caffeine. It circulates through our veins and warms our bodies so we're not so cold to the touch."

"That makes sense, in a funny way. The whole not really eating and preferring liquid. I guess the main stable of your diet would be of course…blood."

"Yeah, the craving for blood never really goes away. It gets easier to control and there are ways of dulling it - alcohol mainly. But it's always there."

"You really bite people and drink their blood?"

"Oh gosh no. I don't want to hurt anyone. I prefer to drink from blood bags. Stefan tried to get me on the bunny diet in the beginning. But I didn't like it. I think that blood bags is a good middle ground."

Victoria mentally prepared herself.

"So if you're not hurting anyone and you're not the devil incarnate, why didn't you trust me with your secret? Did you really think that I wouldn't still be your best friend after I knew?"

"You don't understand, once you're sucked into this insane world. That's it, you're in. And yes there are some good parts, but mainly in my experience it's been dangerous and people get hurt. People we love get hurt and die. I thought…we thought we were protecting you from all of that.

Sure, it wasn't until I died and became a vampire did I learn everything Elena and Bonnie were keeping hidden. But I was already in it before that, I just didn't know. Do you remember when I 'dated' Damon Salvatore? I was so happy to have this good looking older boyfriend. I was ecstatic after Stefan's rejection that someone preferred me, but mainly preferred me over Elena."

Victoria thought back to the start of the school year. "I remember. He dropped you off at cheerleading practice a few times. You wouldn't stop talking about how good the sex was."

Caroline snorted, "and in reality, I was just a meal and a good time for him. He didn't care about me, he just wanted someone in the know who could tell him the who's who of the town and compel to do his bidding. I was just a small part in his master plan to be reacquainted with his equally psycho ex-girlfriend. That's a story for another time, but my point is. It was horrible and painful and confusing and I just never wanted to expose you to any of that. But I'm worried that it's happening anyway… with you and Klaus."

"Nik isn't like that."

"I don't know if you truly know what Klaus is like. What he's done. The sire-bond control he currently has over Tyler after making him a hybrid."

Victoria flinched at her best friends name. "I might not know about the control he has over Tyler. But I do know that he never compelled me. He never forced or pushed me to do anything I didn't want to. Sure, he skirted the truth sometimes, but he never actually lied to me."

Caroline hesitated. Maybe her best friend had experienced another side of him. A side she and none of the others had ever seen. Either way, she realised that she had let her friend down, even before Klaus came to town.

"I'm sorry, Vee. I see now even though we never compelled you we still took something away from you, still made you feel confused and alone. It was selfish and I’m so sorry."

Victoria could hear the remorse in her best friends voice and identify the regret in her eyes. Seeing her best friend sitting in front of her, tears forming, looking so vulnerable triggered a memory. A memory of another time Victoria had seen this look on her best friend's face. It was freshman year, Caroline's parents had just split after finding out her dad had an affair with another man. In the beginning, like every child of divorce, Caroline blamed herself. Twisted the narrative and convinced herself that she was the reason her dad was leaving. Victoria had been there to tell her otherwise.

Another memory came, but this time it was Victoria crying and distraught. Sophomore year. Her mother's case had been essentially marked as a cold case, unsolvable. Caroline had been the one to comfort her this time, never leaving her side until she was ready.

A third and final memory entered Victoria's mind. They must have been around 11 years old, riding their bikes around Mystic Falls. The had taken a dirt path near the cemetery and Victoria fell. Caroline raced to her friend's side and helped her up. Victoria has been worried about continuing, but Caroline was there to encourage her. "Don't worry, my mum says there's nothing to be afraid of, you just have to never give up and always get back on the bike. And anyway, I'll always be here to help you."

Victoria felt her own tears form. She rushed around the island bench and pulled her best friend into a hug.

"I'm still so mad at you. But I think I'm starting to understand why you did it," she sobbed through tears. Both girls held each other for a long time before Victoria pulled away and sat on the stool next to Caroline.

A new wave of tears was about to roll on through at another realisation.

"Caroline," Victoria croaked. "You died."

Caroline nodded, a dejected look in her eyes. "Technically I was murdered. By Damon and Stefan's psycho ex-girlfriend. Yes, the same one I mentioned before. The craziest part is that she's an ancestor of Elena's who turned into a vampire because she was also a doppelganger and didn't want to die in Klaus' ritual 500 years old."

"Wait, what!?"

Caroline spent the next hour taking Victoria through the tragedy that is Katherine Pierce and how she had meddled her way into their lives.

"Ok, so because you had Damon's blood in your system when Katherine smothered you with a pillow, that was how you turned into a vampire. Right?"

"Yes, although technically it meant that when I woke I was in transition. If I didn't drink human blood while in transition I would have died as normal."

"How long is someone in transition for?"

"I'm not 100% sure, but I think it's about 24 hours. But I did drink human blood, so now I'm 17 forever."

"Your birthday's next week, you're turning 18, Care!"

"Technically I don't age, I'm going to be stuck in a filler year for the rest of my life."

"At least you'll be able to graduate, you couldn't have done that if you were dead."

Caroline rolled her eyes.

"Or go to college next year, also could have done that if you had died. Or blow out eighteen candles on a birthday cake Elena is inevitably making for next week, that wouldn't happen if you passed on from this world."

"Ok, ok, I see what you're trying to do," Caroline laughed. "But it's not going to work, I'm just not going to look forward to my birthday."

Victoria spent the rest of the evening listening to Caroline's stories from the past year or so since Stefan Salvatore had come to town. When Caroline left, Victoria could finally hop into bed and finish processing. That evening her mind was made up and she was sure of her decisions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wowzers this chapter just flowed! Once I got started, I didn't want to stop! I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it (esp the Nik/Victoria scene!) and I really hope you all have had a nice and safe holidays.


	5. Chapter 5

Victoria was standing by Caroline's locker blowing up little balloons when Bonnie and Elena finally arrived to help. It was odd for both girls to be running late, especially Elena who had spearheaded the 'decorate Caroline's locker for her birthday' plan. Bonnie and Elena rambled off their excuses for being late (Bonnie had been working on new spells, while Elena had been training to fight vampires with Alaric), but gave Victoria friendly smiles. Although they had now settled back into a delicate friendship, it hadn't been the easiest road to begin with.  
  
On Monday morning, Bonnie, Elena and Caroline had been waiting for her at one of their usual morning spots, on one of the outdoor tables on the school lawn. Victoria saw them and while she felt a bit nervous about the impending conversation, felt confident in her feelings. She wanted, no she needed to make it right with each of them. They had all been best friends for a lifetime and she didn't want the past year to change that. Of course, she would never allow her friends to keep such monumental secrets from her ever again. But she had decided that their actions moving forward would be the judge of whether their friendships survived.  
  
"Morning," Victoria broke the silence.  
  
Bonnie was the first to respond. "Vee, I want to say sorry I am for how I reacted that afternoon at Caroline's. I didn't make finding out about all of this any easier or less confusing."  
  
Elena nodded in agreeance. "We're also both sorry for not telling you sooner. I'm sorry for not telling you sooner. It all started with me and Stefan, and I should have told you. We thought that if you didn't know, you'd be safe. But then things got so out of control and everything we had done to keep you out of it, it just blew up in our faces."   
  
Victoria could hear a sincere apology in her friend's voice. "Thank you for saying that. While it has been pretty difficult to wrap my head around…everything. I'm just glad that we're now all on the same page and can be honest with each other. No more life-altering secrets, right?"   
  
"Yes, of course!" Caroline chimed in.  
  
"Definitely," Bonnie quietly agreed, knowing that she still currently had some secrets to keep from her friends. The most prominent at the time being the location of Klaus' family coffins and her work to try and open the locked one.  
  
Elena nodded her head, "yes, no more secrets. And now that you know it makes it so much…easier to warn you of Klaus. I don't know how we would have convinced you to stay away from him, of just how dangerous he is. But now you know the truth, you won't want to see him again."  
  
Victoria was hesitant about what to say next. She didn't want to lie to her friends, she had had enough of the secrets between them. She had also made another decision over the weekend. "I'm…not sure that's true. He's… he's not all you think he is."  
  
"I don't think we can hold Vee to the experiences we've had with Klaus," Caroline cautiously defended.  
  
"But she can understand the pain and death he's brought with him. Only the other weekend he tried to murder my brother - he's a monster!"  
  
"What did you expect his response to be after having his family taken from him? If someone had kidnapped Jeremy you would move heaven and hell to get him back."  
  
"I can't believe you're defending Klaus! After everything he's done."  
  
"What about everything you've done!" Victoria gestured about to all of them. "All the secrets you've kept. All the people who have died as a result of the decisions you've made. Or all the actions you've forgiven from someone who acted very much like a monster in the past." Victoria looked pointedly at Elena, hoping her dig at Damon was conveyed.  
  
Victoria took a breath, trying to calm herself and the situation unfolding. "I don't want us to fight over this. I just want you to understand that I see both sides…because of the position I've been put in….forced into…I just have a different view. It doesn't make either of our feelings or thoughts right or wrong, it just means that we might not always see eye to eye. But if that's too much for you, too much for our friendship to handle…" Victoria was speaking directly to Elena now.  
  
Elena glanced at her other friends. She could see the fierce commitment in Caroline's eyes and the first small signs of understanding in Bonnie's to stand by Victoria's side. Elena looked down at her hands, she loved Victoria just as she loved all of her friends. She realised she didn't want to lose her over this.  
  
"No, it's not. It might take some time and I might never fully agree with you on somethings. But it's no too much." Elena opened her arms as if to ask 'hug?' and without hesitation Victoria nodded and pulled her friend into a tight hug, knowing that they would be able to get past this.  
  
"Aww, group hug!" Caroline shouted before wrapping her arms around her friends. Bonnie laughed and joined her best friends as well.  
  
Victoria was starting to place the balloons into Caroline's locker when she wondered if this was a part of the reason why Elena was so eager for them to work together to celebrate Caroline's birthday. To have a common shared goal again that had nothing to do with anything supernatural. Either way, Victoria was enjoying herself and she hoped that their efforts would also cheer Caroline up. Especially after her break up with Tyler. Victoria felt conflicted and guilty about Tyler, she had been avoiding him all week. There was something about his betrayal that dug deeper than the others.  
  
Victoria was snapped out of her thoughts by Elena's announcement. "So, I have something I need to tell you guys, and you're not gonna like it."  
  
"What happened?" Bonnie asked immediately expecting the worst.  
  
"Jeremy is going to be leaving town for a while. He'll be staying with some old family friends in Denver until this whole…mess...with Klaus and his family blows over."  
  
It took Bonnie a moment to comprehend Elena's news. "Jeremy wouldn't just leave you to deal with everything on your own."  
  
"I know...I asked Damon to compel him."  
  
"You what?" Victoria exclaimed, shocked that Elena would even consider that an option.  
  
"I know, I know. But it's not safe for him here anymore. Leaving will give him a better life…." Elena looked directly at Bonnie, "the only reason I'm saying anything is that we promised no secrets and I know that you two haven't really worked out your stuff. And I thought that maybe you'd want to say goodbye."  
  
Bonnie handed her streamers to Victoria and stormed off.  
  
Elena sighed, "I just can't lose him as well Vee. He's the only family I have left."  
  
Victoria softened, "I know Lena."  
  
Caroline had shared with Victoria the groups latest run-in with Niklaus after their confrontation on Monday. Victoria hadn't known it, but the day she had seen Jeremy and Alaric in the hospital had been the day after Jeremy had been placed in danger. Alaric had jumped in front of a car to stop it from hitting Jeremy. Tyler had been at the wheel.  
  
Niklaus was getting desperate to find his family and had used harming Jeremy to send a message. Victoria could understand his need to find them, but what she learned gave her pause. It was a large part of the reason why she hadn't contacted him since that afternoon in the garden. She knew what her heart wanted and the choice she had made, but her head that was wavering.  
  
Victoria and Elena finished decorating Caroline's locker in silence, but it had been in vain because Caroline never showed. Victoria, Bonnie, Elena and Matt were standing by Caroline's unopened locker at the end of the school day.  
  
Victoria opened her friend's locker and looked at the decorations. "I told you she wasn't looking forward to her birthday. She kept saying something about it being a filler year."  
  
Elena grabbed a birthday crown that had been placed in the centre of the locker, "but I didn't think she wouldn't show."  
  
"Maybe we shouldn't force her if she doesn't want to celebrate her birthday…" Bonnie trailed off.  
  
Victoria jumped in, "or maybe we should, and celebrate like when we were younger…"  
  
"Of course, at the Falls," Matt finished, following Victoria's train of thought. Victoria smiled, glad that her and Matt we're still able to get on the same wavelength so quickly. Matt had been the easiest for Victoria to reconnect with. He had been in the dark like Victoria for a long time, was genuinely apologetic for not telling her (although the decision was really out of his control) and had no qualms about Victoria's encounters or unspoken feelings for Niklaus.  
  
The gang decided to split up and meet at Caroline's house in three-quarters of an hour. That would give them enough time to quickly get home, change, pack a few supplies (including Matt who insisted he needed to get an essential surprise item) and head to Caroline's.

* * *

  
They had all grabbed everything they needed and re-grouped on Caroline's porch. Bonnie rang the doorbell and it only took a moment for a dejected Caroline to open the door.   
  
"Surprise!" They yelled as the door opened, balloons and party supplies taken from the locker in hand.  
  
"What are you guys doing here?"  
  
"Well you blew off school and missed our work of birthday art, so…" Elena placed the birthday crown on Caroline's head.  
  
"Change into warmer clothes, we are going to the Falls. We'll have s'mores, make a campfire…" Bonnie started  
  
"…and eat cake! Like when we were little!" Victoria finished.  
  
"Except for the tequila!" Matt declared pulling out his surprise item.  
  
Caroline smiled at Matt's gesture. "Thanks, guys. Really, um, I'm just not feeling my birthday this year."  
  
"I'm sorry, what? You've already claimed your birthday as everyone's favourite day of the year," Bonnie laughed.  
  
"Yeah, and now, it's just a reminder that technically, I'm dead. Look, I didn't even like 17. And the only point to being 17 is to get to 18. It's a filler year, I'm stuck in a filler year."  
  
"You're not stuck, Care." Victoria tried to comfort her best friend.  
  
"Yeah I am, but it's okay. You know, it's all good, I'll be fine. But I just need some time to wallow in it."  
  
Elena thought about Caroline's situation, thought about what her friend needed for her 17th birthday. "Okay, well I think I have another idea. We won't all fit in my car, so Matt follow me and I'll lead the way."  
  
Caroline and Bonnie ended up in Elena's car and Victoria got a ride with Matt in his Chevy pickup truck. Matt and Victoria started speculating where Elena could be taking them, but it became evident pretty quickly that they were heading towards the Mystic Falls Cemetery. But specifically the older part of the cemetery, located in a dense part of the woods. Elena and Matt parked next to each other and the group followed Elena instructions on what to bring. They then followed her deeper into the cemetery, until she exclaimed, "there it is!"  
  
"This is creepy, even for us." Bonnie stepped through the crypt's entrance and into a medium-sized room with cement benches.  
  
"No, Caroline was right...technically, she's dead. Sorry. But you don't need a birthday, you need a funeral. You need to say goodbye to your old life so that you can move on with your new one." Elena placed the boxed birthday cake on a ledge in the crypt.  
  
Caroline removed her birthday crown, considering the idea for a moment then smiled, "okay. Here lies Caroline Forbes…"  
  
Elena returned her smile, glad her friend was into her idea. She started placing the candles on Caroline's cake and continued with, "cheerleader, Miss Mystic Falls, third-grade hopscotch champion…"  
  
"Best friend, natural blonde, most requested Sexy Suds car washer… " Victoria jumped in beaming.  
  
"Daughter, enthusiastic volunteer, overachiever…" Bonnie added laughing,  
  
"Mean girl, sometimes, no offence," Matt chuckled.  
  
"Ah, none taken."  
  
Elena concluded placing the homemade cake in front of her friend, "she was 17, and she had a really good life. So rest in peace, so that she can move forward. That's what you really need. What we all really need. Amen, or cheers or whatever."  
  
They all chuckled and Matt raised the tequila bottle taking a swig.  
  
"Bonnie?" Elena asked indicating to the cake. Bonnie realised what Elena was after and closed her eyes. The candles became alight, distributing a soft warm glow around the dusty crypt.  
  
"Nice! Okay, make a wish." Elena held the cake in front of Caroline. Caroline thought for a moment of a wish and realised that she didn't need one. Being here, now, with all of her friends, especially Victoria was all she needed. She didn't say that to the group though, all she did was close her eyes and blew out the candles.  
  
The group cheered and Matt passed Caroline the bottle of tequila. She took a generous sip before passing it to Victoria who did the same. The group settled down on the crypt benches while Elena started cutting the cake and passing around slices on paper plates.  
  
"Can vampires even get drunk?" Victoria mused after watching Caroline take another generous sip from the bottle.  
  
"Oh definitely," Elena sniggered handing out the slices of cake.  
  
Caroline rolled her eyes at Elena's tone, she guessed Elena hadn't gotten over her past experiences with drunk Stefan. "Yes we can, it just takes a bit more than the average human to get us drunk. But it does really take the edge off."  
  
"From all of the blood cravings, right?" Victoria moved to sit next to her best friend.  
  
"Yeah, but also all of our emotions. Everything we feel is heightened and sometimes it can be hard to deal with. Alcohol helps with all the inside jittery stuff, helps make it easier to get under control."  
  
The bottle was passed to Victoria who took another sip. "Heightened?"  
  
"Everything is just more…amplified. It depends on the situation and the type of emotion, but we just feel more. It does get easier to handle over time. I remember when I first turned, anything could set me off. I'd be talking to my mum and I'd start the conversation defensive and a bit of a brat." Caroline chuckled at those memories.  
  
"Or I would see Matt talking to a girl and instantly be jealous and over-protective."  
  
Matt laughed in response to this one passing the bottle to Elena. Victoria thought about her own memories during this time. The biggest thing that stood out to her was that Caroline had felt so distant, now Victoria knew Caroline had been avoiding her on purpose.  
  
"Anyway like I said, heightened. Sadness turns into sorrow, happiness becomes elation, an argument turns into a fight, a kiss turns into…."  
  
"Into?" Victoria giggled.  
  
Caroline joined her, "into crazy vampire sex. I mean the alternative is constantly being horny like all the time."  
  
Elena snorted at Caroline's frankness and passed the bottle onto Bonnie.  
  
"Hey! It's not like you don't know what I'm talking about Lena! I'm sure you and Stefan had plenty of crazy vampire sex while you were together."  
  
"Well…" Elena blushed.  
  
"Ok, this is officially falling into 'too much information' territory for me." Matt jumped up off the bench seat and grabbed a second serving of cake. Victoria leaned in grabbing the bottle which was now back with Caroline and mouthed 'later' to her best friend.  
  
The conversation between friends returned to 'safer' topics and it was a while later when Matt reached over to grab the less than half full bottle but Elena beat him to it. "Ah, I need it more than you do, trust me."  
  
Elena was just about to take a sip when she noticed Caroline on her phone.  
  
"Care, what are you doing?"  
  
Caroline froze and looked up with a forced fake innocent look on her face, "what? Nothing."  
  
"Okay, you're a bad sober liar. You're an even worse drunk liar," Elena rolled her eyes at Caroline's attempts to hide her phone.  
  
"I might have texted Tyler."  
  
"Caroline…" Elena groaned.  
  
"What? I'm delicate."  
  
Victoria nearly got away withholding in a laugh at Caroline's response. But like Caroline, she may have been more intoxicated than she thought.  
  
Bonnie sighed in frustration. "Give her a break! You can't control what everyone does all the time."  
  
There was a strained silence. Victoria got up from her seat and started to wonder over to a more secluded corner of the crypt. If Care could text Tyler after everything that's happened, surely she could work up the nerve to text him. Her mind immediately agreed with her all too keen heart, previous sober hesitations gone and replaced with a tequila induced confidence.  
  
She quickly and quietly sent a text to Nik's number (still called N in her phone), requesting to talk and her location. However, her attention was brought back to the conversation in the room, as Bonnie exclaimed, "sorry! I know it's Caroline birthday, funeral or whatever but, I just feel it's really wrong that you compelled Jeremy to leave town."  
  
Elena defended herself, "I'm doing it to protect him, Bonnie. I want to give him a chance to have a quiet normal life."  
  
"He should be able to choose how he wants to live it, you're taking his choices away. This is just like Vee all over again!" Bonnie gestured in her direction. Victoria stiffened. She wasn't in the best frame of mind to get involved in such an emotional conversation. Plus she was also majorly distracted by the idea of seeing Nik again.  
  
"Bonnie, please, you can't tell him," Elena pleaded.  
  
"Why? Are you gonna compel me not to? Doesn't this bother you, Vee?" Bonnie called out, throwing the last question in Victoria's direction.  
  
Before Victoria could answer, Matt thankfully interrupted, "you know, you guys are ruining a perfect funeral."  
  
Bonnie let out a long breath, grabbed her bag and started to leave, "I'm sorry. I'm just gonna go sleep it off or something. Happy birthday, Care."  
  
The remaining group members sat in silence, more focused on finishing off the bottle of tequila between them. But after a few moments Victoria attempted to break the ice, "so should we go back to talking about vampire sex? As I feel like that was less awkward than this."  
  
The others laughed, Victoria's attempt was successful and the silence ended.  
  
They had moved onto discussing potential themes for the next decade dance. Matt was being very 'helpful' suggesting themes such as Harry Potter or Twilight ("But Care you won't even need a costume" Victoria had uncooperatively added giggling). Much to Caroline's frustration, Matt also continued to seemingly forget that the theme had to relate to an actual decade (of course he then tried to argue that Harry Potter was of cultural importance for their decade) when they had an unexpected guest arrive.  
  
The group was laughing at Matt's attempts to defend his theme suggestions when Tyler walked into the crypt. The group quietened all looking towards the crypt's entrance.  
  
"Sorry, I didn't mean to crash the party."  
  
"So don't." Matt coldly responded a guarded look in his eye.  
  
Victoria looked away, unable to make eye contact with Tyler, the guilt at recently avoiding him building inside her.  
  
"No, it's-it's okay," Caroline jumped up and stepped towards Tyler.  
  
"Can I talk to you for a sec? It's kind of important." Tyler gestured towards the entrance of the crypt. Caroline nodded and they both left seeking a moment of privacy.  
  
Elena had just started asking Matt if he was ok when Victoria couldn't take it anymore. "Wait, wait!" She exclaimed before trying to race after the pair. She stepped outside the crypt and looked around. They were nowhere in sight. She took a few hesitant steps in the direction she thought they might have gone when she decided it was probably best to head back. She turned to head back but quickly realised she didn't recognise the way. Either the woods had suddenly changed or she was tipsier than she thought.  
  
She turned again. "Oh crap," she muttered to herself.  
  
Someone chuckled behind her. She whirled around scared by the unexpected sound, immediately expecting the worst. Instead, she found Niklaus leaning up against a tree a few meters away, amused smile on his face.  
  
Before her mind could catch up with what her heart was ordering her body to do, she bounded towards him, closing the distance and threw her arms around his neck, "you came!"  
  
He laughed again, shifting his stance so that his back was now pressing against the tree.  
  
"Of course, love." Niklaus brushed a lock of hair back behind her ear.  
  
Victoria smiled as his hand rested on her cheek. As she looked into his eyes, her brain slowly started to catch up with her actions and she realised how close she was to him. She blushed, lowering her hands from around his neck and resting them on his chest.  
  
She fiddled with his jacket and realised he was wearing a stylish white shirt and vest.  
  
"This looks nice. Where have you been tonight?"  
  
"Oh you know, just a town fundraising event. Meeting the Mayor, making connections…my house is nearly finished and if I'm going to be staying in Mystic Falls, I thought I should lay the groundwork with a few key players in town."  
  
Victoria found herself delighted by the idea of Nik staying in town. She shouldn't have been surprised really, she had made up her mind about him, she had just needed a bit of liquid courage to follow it through. Now that he was here…  
  
"So you don't think you'll get bored with small-town life?"  
  
"Oh, I think there are one or two things that will keep me entertained."  
  
"Things?"  
  
"Things….people…Is this really what you wanted to talk about though? Fundraisers and small-town life?"  
  
Victoria laughed, "no you're right this isn't what I wanted to talk about." She looked up into his eyes, "I haven't been able to stop thinking about you since our talk in the garden. I've wanted to talk to you all week but haven't been able to find the right way to do it. I have also been dying to do this again."  
  
She pushed her lips hungrily onto his, trying to sate the ember that had been within her all week. Nik responded in kind, sliding his hand to the back of her neck pulling her closer into him.  
  
The kiss deepened. She found herself leaning heavily against his chest, her knees giving in against him. She felt his other hand slide down her body and rest securely on her hips. He started to trail kisses down her neck, staying clear of her necklace, when a soft moan escaped from her lips.  
  
"Oh Nik, I want more…" If she wasn't so caught up in the moment and a bit tipsy she would have probably been embarrassed by her statement. But in that moment, it felt so right.  
  
"Hmm, tell me. What do you want?" He continued to kiss her neck, excitement growing.  
  
"I want more of this. More of you. I want you to come into my house, my bedroom. I want to find you on my bed…" she paused her inebriated mind enjoying the picture it had painted. She recaptured his lips.  
  
"And then what?" He asked in between kisses wanting her to continue.  
  
Victoria placed her lips next to his ear and softly whispered her deepest desire.  
  
"Then you can do whatever you want to me."  
  
Nik growled hungrily at her response, causing her own burning passion to spike. He lifted her against himself and spun her around. She felt the rough bark against her back as she wrapped her legs around his waist, continuing to attack his lips with her own. With one arm holding her up, Niklaus' other started to explore her body and found it's way under her t-shirt and against her breasts. She arched her back slightly, giving into his touch. She could feel him hard against her. She started to unsuccessfully unbutton his vest when he groaned in frustration.  
  
"What's wrong?"  
  
"We shouldn't...shouldn't do this. Not here in the woods against a tree and definitely not while you're drunk."  
  
She was about to protest, but he silenced her with a delicate kiss while slowing removing his hands and placing her feet on the ground. He rested his forehead against hers and she watched as he took a few deep breaths. She found that she was a bit lightheaded and that her breathing also needed steadying, maybe he was right.  
  
The ringing of his phone interrupted the silence. Niklaus opened his eyes. Never taking them off Victoria he answered, forehead still pressed against hers.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
Victoria heard a faint voice on the other end on the phone, "Tell your hybrids to get out of town, Klaus."  
  
Niklaus straightened and stepped away from Victoria.  
  
"Well, that's not going to happen until I get my coffins back." There was a pause as he waited for a response.  
  
"I don't believe you. You won't kill her."  
  
A scream through the phone sobered up Victoria. She grabbed Nik's arm and was startled by his concerned look.  
  
"What's going on Stefan…You won't do it."  
  
Another pause. Niklaus ignored Victoria's frightened face.  
  
"Fine, I'll send them away. You win."  
  
She jumped as he roared into the phone, "stop the car, Stefan!"  
  
There was a painstakingly long moment before the fear left Niklaus' eyes and he hung up the phone.  
  
"What happened Nik?" Victoria asked turning him towards her. He grabbed her hand and pulled her into a hug. Cupping her cheek with his other hand he finally responded.  
  
"Stefan took Elena to bargain with, but she's ok."  
  
"Elena!?"  
  
"She's ok, I did as he requested. But I need to go and deal with my hybrids before he changes his mind. If you head back that way," he pulled back slightly and pointed past her left shoulder. "You will find the crypt and your friends."  
  
Niklaus looked at the girl he held in his arms and for the first time in a long time, he felt a hint of fear. It had been a long time since he had felt anything close to it, that it took him a moment to realise what it was. When he dug deeper into the root of the cause he realised that it was fear for her. If it had been her in that car…no he wouldn't allow himself to go there.  
  
He kissed her forehead before turning her in the right direction and disappeared from the woods.  
  
Victoria walked forward, the woods quickly became familiar again and before she knew it she was back at the crypt. It was here she found Matt leaning against the entrance, hand on his head and eyes closed.  
  
"Matt! Are you ok?"  
  
"Yeah, but we need to get Elena, she's missing. Someone took her. We were going to look for you and Caroline and whoever took her knocked me out."  
  
"That must have been Stefan. He grabbed Elena, but she's ok now."  
  
They both looked up in a surprise at the sound of a stick snapping. Caroline stumbled forwards leaning against a tree, a pained look etched on her pale face.  
  
Victoria and Matt rushed towards her almost missing her as she fell forward.  
  
"Tyler bit me," Caroline softly mumbled in Matt's arms before passing out.  
  
They quickly rushed back to Matt's car and placed Caroline in between them, her head leaning against Victoria.  
  
"What do we do? What's wrong with her?"  
  
"It's not good, Vee. If Tyler bit her his werewolf venom will be in her system, infecting her. It's deadly to vampires." Matt spoke attempting to remain calm as he sped out of the woods and towards town.  
  
Victoria pulled out her mobile and scrolled through her phone contacts until she found Liz's number. After two rings Caroline's mum answered.  
  
"Liz, it's Victoria. Something's happened to Caroline. Tyler bit her, what should we do?"  
  
Sherriff Forbes' crisis management kicked in immediately. "Take her home, I will meet you there. I'm only a few minutes away. I'll need to call the others, we need to figure out a plan to get Klaus' blood. It's the only known cure for a werewolf bite. We need to think of something to offer in exchange."  
  
"Wait, don't call the others. I can…let me make a call first. We'll meet you at home and I can explain."  
  
Matt heard her mention home and headed for that direction. They were only a few streets away.  
  
When they arrived, Liz's police cruiser was already there. Victoria helped Matt get Caroline out of the car, but hung back as he carried her inside. She opened her mobile.  
  
Why was she so nervous, she thought. Before hitting dial she realised, this was the first time she had asked for something from him. The first time she needed tangible help from him and a small, tiny part of her worried what if it had all been a lie? If he was just using her and it was all an act, then he would have no problems refusing her request.  
  
She hit dial.  
  
"Victoria, what's wrong?"  
  
"I…I need your help Nik. Caroline's been bitten, she…she needs your blood to cure her. She's my best friend Nik, I don't want to lose her"  
  
There was a slight pause. Victoria's heart raced. Was this it? Was this the moment that deep dark part of her expected?  
  
"Text me your location, I'm on my way."  
  
Victoria breathed a sigh of relief. She quickly hung up and texted the Forbes' address and in a few minutes, he was there. Standing in front of her.  
  
"You came." She echoed her earlier self, but this time with much less external enthusiasm.  
  
Niklaus smiled softly and nodded. Victoria didn't hesitate, she grabbed his hand and led him up the porch steps and opened the door. Niklaus waited by the entrance.  
  
Matt appeared, he noticed the closeness between Victoria and Niklaus.  
  
"You made Tyler do this to her. He would have never done something like this," Matt accused.  
  
Niklaus looked away in frustration.  
  
"If that boy wasn't so brazen this wouldn't have happened. But at Victoria's request, I'm here to help, Matt. My blood will heal her. Please, ask the Sheriff to invite me inside."  
  
Liz appeared behind Matt. "I know how this game works. You want something in return."  
  
"Just your support." Niklaus looked over a Victoria, knowing he could ask for so much more, use this situation even further to his advantage. But he didn't, for her.  
  
It only took a moment for Liz to consider his offer, before responding, "come in."  
  
He stepped inside over the door's threshold, Matt nodded his head towards Caroline's bedroom and Victoria led Niklaus there.  
  
Victoria sat on the opposite end of Caroline's bed and saw Nik pause in the doorway.  
  
Caroline's eyes opened at the movement in her room, they landed on Niklaus.  
  
"Are you going to kill me?"  
  
"On your birthday? You really think that low of me?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
Victoria looked away, slightly hurt that her friend still felt that way. Niklaus must have been thinking something similar as he asked next.  
  
"What about your best friend? Do you think that low of her opinion and trust in me?"  
  
Caroline looked over at her best friend, Victoria slowly met her eyes.  
  
"No, I trust her with my life."  
  
"And that is why I'm here." He moved into the room.  
  
"That looks bad. My apologies, you're what's known as collateral damage from an argument gone wrong. It's nothing personal. Besides I love birthdays."  
  
"Yeah, sure. Aren't you like...a billion, or something?" Caroline snapped back.  
  
Niklaus smiled, he liked the strength he saw in Victoria's friend. "Well, you have to adjust your perception of time when you become a vampire, Caroline. Celebrate the fact that you're no longer bound by trivial human conventions. You're free."  
  
"No, I'm dying."  
  
Niklaus joined Victoria on the bed sitting beside Caroline. "And I could let you die if that's what you want. If you really believe your existence has no meaning. Or you can have a thousand more birthdays. All you have to do is ask."  
  
Victoria was worried that Caroline wouldn't ask. That after Caroline's week of dread and complaints about being stuck that she wouldn't want to be saved.  
  
However, unbeknownst to Victoria, Caroline knew her decision. She had realised it much earlier that evening when she blew out the candles on her cake.  
  
"I don't want to die."  
  
Niklaus softly smiled, glad that Victoria wouldn't be losing a friend tonight. He rolled up his sleeve and lifted his wrist to Caroline's mouth. Victoria saw the black pulsating veins appear under Caroline's eyes as she leaned forward and bit into Niklaus' wrist.  
  
Surprisingly, the scene before her didn't scare or disturb Victoria. She guessed that she must be starting to get used to the crazy new world she had entered. After a moment Caroline pulled away from Niklaus and closed her eyes to sleep.  
  
Victoria followed Niklaus as he stood and left the house. They stopped, standing together on the front lawn. She could feel eye's watching them from the Forbes' residence.  
  
"Thank you, Nik. Thank you for not letting me down."  
  
Niklaus smiled pleased. "If we had a bit more privacy love, I would kiss you right now. Alas, that will have to wait."  
  
Victoria was a little confused by his remark, but before she could voice her question he disappeared for the second time that night. Leaving her to contemplate his comment as she returned inside and back to Caroline's side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again for all of your comments, kudos' and bookmarks - I'm so happy that you're enjoying my story! 
> 
> To be honest, I'm a little nervous about this chapter. It's the first chapter really that contains scenes and dialogue from the tv show (I did tweak some of it to suit the story) and I hope I incorporated it ok/in a way that makes sense, or better yet I hope I incorporated Victoria in a way that makes sense! This was also the first chapter with something a little steamy between Vee and Nik, which is definitely a new writing experience for me.
> 
> Anyway, let me know if you liked this chapter and I'll hopefully have the next one ready soon!


	6. Chapter 6

The brush struggled to clear a path through the tangles and knots that were in Victoria's hair. Sitting in her bedroom at her dresser, it had been a little over 24 hours since the group had met on Caroline's porch.  
  
With every brush, Victoria reflected on the roller coaster that had been last nights events. From celebrating Caroline's birthday to feeling guilty about Tyler, then the high of making out with Niklaus to fearing for Caroline's life. Hectic would be an understatement to describe the evening Victoria thought.  
  
Then there was today, it's own loop in the roller coaster.  
  
She had risen early with Caroline, who was back to her bright and perky self. Especially with no poison in her system, a good nights sleep and, to Victoria's annoyance, no hangover for the vampire. On top of all this, Caroline was trying to be extra cheery after Tyler's betrayal. Victoria knew it was a force of habit, her best friends way of dealing with being bitten by her kind of, maybe, boyfriend. But either way, Victoria couldn't stand much of it with her very human hangover. She loved her best friend, but she desperately needed a shower and greasy food.  
  
Victoria enjoyed the short walk home. The fresh air was helping her headache. She responded to a text message her Aunt has sent last night. She apologised for the delay in replying, mentioning Caroline's birthday and a promise to fill her in on the night's events later, it was too difficult to describe it all via text.  
  
Victoria called out to her father when she arrived home, but there was no response. She shrugged to herself, she probably had just forgotten his plans for the weekend. Before running a nice hot shower, Victoria took aspirin for her headache and downed a big glass of water.  
  
The aspirin started to take effect as she was showering, giving her the brainpower to think about the night's events. Besides the incredibly satisfying rendezvous with Nik, there was another part of the evening stood out to Victoria. Seeing Tyler and the guilt she had felt. She still felt remnants of it now just thinking about it. She had to finish what her liquid courage had started last night and go to him to settle this once and for all.   
  
Victoria reluctantly finished her shower and got dressed with a plan to head over to the Lockwood's. However, she was coming down the stairs when the front door opened and her Aunt greeted her with a white paper bag and tray of coffee cups, all marked with the Mystic Grill logo.  
  
"Please tell me that's what I think it is!?"  
  
"One unhealthily delicious bacon and egg roll and one very large coffee for my niece, who undoubtedly partied a bit too much last night. "  
  
Victoria grinned as her Aunt held the bag hostage waiting for confirmation.  
  
"Well, it was Caroline's birthday after all! What's a best friend to do if not to celebrate with her bestie for the momentous occasion!"  
  
Her Aunt just laughed in response and handed over the bag as Victoria sang her praises.  
  
They made their way to the living room, making unintentional synchronised movements as they both sat and took large sips of their coffees.  
  
Victoria filled her Aunt in on most of the night's events. Leaving out a few key details, like just how much they drank and her time in the woods with Nik. She did fill her Aunt in on the last events of the evening. Unsurprisingly, Meredith took a great interest in Niklaus's blood being a cure for a hybrid/werewolf bite and the side effects Caroline had shown before being cured.  
  
Meredith's wandering thoughts on the effects of werewolf bites were interrupted by her niece's next question.  
  
"Do you know where my Dad is today?"  
  
"Oh, he's away all weekend. He went camping with the usual gang or maybe it was to the lake house? Either way, he said something about fishing all day and then cooking the 'spoils', his words not mine, for dinner. Didn't you see him last night?"  
  
"Ah that's right, it was camping. He mentioned it earlier in the week and I pretty much went from school to Caroline's last night."  
  
Her Aunt nodded and finished the last of her coffee. "So what are your plans for the rest of the day? Nap?"  
  
Victoria chuckled, "I wish, but no. I'm going to head over to Tyler's and finally talk to him about everything."  
  
"Good! You too have been friends for far too long for something like this to get in the way."  
  
"What about yourself? Do you have work?"  
  
"I do, but not until later this afternoon. I actually have a lunch date first with…Alaric Saltzman."  
  
"Mr Saltzman! When did this happen!?"  
  
"Nothing has happened…yet. He was my patient and we flirted a bit. Then I saw him at last night's fundraiser, we got talking, he asked and I thought why not? It's not like there's many good looking bachelors in town, especially ones that can hold a decent conversation and I don't have to play dumb around with the strange town events."  
  
Victoria laughed at her Aunt's defensiveness, "firstly you could never 'play dumb' and secondly, I think it's a great idea. Mr Saltzman is…respectable."  
  
She ducked the incoming cushion thrown at her head. "Hey! I said respectable!"  
  
"Yes, but I heard that tone!" Both women laughed before Victoria explained. "I only know him as my history teacher. I'm sure he's a lot more warm and fuzzy outside of school. At least that's what Elena tells me anyway."  
  
"Ah-ha. I mean I like what I've seen so far, so I should probably get going if I want to get to the Mystic Grill on time. I'll talk to you later, good luck with Tyler!"  
  
"Thanks, and good luck with your date!" Victoria watched her Aunt leave and cleaned up the few pieces of rubbish. Her father must have gotten a ride with someone else for camping, so she grabbed his car keys and left for the Lockwood's.  


* * *

  
The Lockwood Mansion loomed over her head. It has always felt like a second home growing up, but now it felt different, colder than before. Victoria took a deep breath as she walked up the front steps to the front door.  
  
The door was unlocked, slightly open.  
  
"Tyler?" She called out stepping into the foyer. "Are you home?"  
  
"Up here." Tyler's distant voice responded.  
  
She made her way up the stairs, taking a familiar path to his bedroom. She found Tyler there in his room, throwing clothes from his wardrobe into a sports bag on his bed.  
  
"You're packing? Are you leaving?"  
  
"Ah, yeah I guess. For a while, I'm not sure how long."  
  
"And you weren't going to say goodbye?"  
  
Tyler paused his packing. "So I guess we're doing this then."  
  
"Doing what?"  
  
"Finally going to talk. To yell and shout. Don't forget Vee, I've known you long enough to know how this goes. One of us does something stupid, we fight and then we're good again. Can't we skip everything and just jump to the friends part? I'm a bit rushed for time."  
  
Victoria raised her chin and stared straight into his eyes. "You lied to me."  
  
"Oh c'mon Vee, I had no idea what was happening. What was happening to Elena, to Caroline, or even to me in the beginning. I was scared."  
  
"I could have helped you, been there for you. If you had just let me in."  
  
"I was turning into a werewolf! This wasn't like the time we pretended to be the Scooby gang one summer. There was no mystery to solve. It was my first full moon and I just had to break every bone in my body and endure the worst pain imaginable. There's nothing you could have done to stop that or help me through it."  
  
Victoria stepped towards the end of his bed and fiddled with the ornate decoration on his footboard.  
  
"But you did have someone to help you through it…you had Caroline."  
  
Tyler raked his hand through his hair. "You know how persistent she can be when she sets her mind to it. She gave me no choice but to take her help. And when I found out she was a vampire and there was this whole other world of creatures - it was all crazy! Vampires, witches, werewolves and everyone was pitted against each other."  
  
"So why didn't you tell me then? When you found out about everyone else?"  
  
Tyler stepped closer to her side. "Because I left. I left to learn more about what I am from other werewolves, and you're right I should have told you then. But I was too wrapped up in everything. I'm sorry, Vee."  
  
"And now you're leaving again." She looked up at him. "Just when we have the chance to talk about all this and get back to some type of normal again."  
  
He wrapped an arm around her shoulder, "I'm not leaving, leaving. I just have to get away for a bit. I don't want to hurt anyone anymore. I can't hurt Caroline anymore. I need to break my sire bond from Klaus and get my freewill back."  
  
He leaned closer into his one-armed hug, placing his head onto her shoulder.  
  
Tyler sighed, breathing in and out heavily. A tiny trace of a certain familiar scent piqued his interest. "Wait, have you seen him recently?"  
  
Victoria froze. It didn't go unnoticed by Tyler.  
  
He quickly pulled away, "you realise he's dangerous, right?"  
  
"Tyler..."  
  
Stepping further back he continued. "That he uses people. That he does what he wants and he doesn't give a damn about anyone. I mean look at what he did to Caroline."  
  
"You mean what you did. He saved her life."  
  
"Her life wouldn't have needed saving if he hadn't told me to bite her!"  
  
While Victoria knew that was true, she also knew her best friend and that there was more to the story. "And why did he do that? Because I heard you ran your mouth. You probably did your usual stupid jock macho shit, trying to prove your better than everyone else.  
  
It was Tyler's time to freeze up and Victoria knew she was right. "I may have gone…too far, but he still gave the command! The same as with Jeremy. The same with everything! All he does is use people and he'll use you too."  
  
"It's not like that."  
  
"Then what is it like? Huh? Because he's a ruthless psychopath and everything he does is to benefit himself and his grand master plan. You're nothing more than a pawn to him, another piece in his game. Just like me and just like his other hybrids  
  
"That's not true. He cares for me, I know he does!"  
  
"Why? Because he took you on a date and said some pretty words!"  
  
Victoria was seething. "You wouldn't know the first clue as to what has gone on between us!"  
  
"And that should be the end of it! Now you know exactly who he is, there shouldn't be anymore, it should be over, finished!"  
  
"It's not that simple." Victoria hoped he could understand even a fraction of what she was going through and how she felt. But he had the same stubborn look in his eyes she had seen her whole life.  
  
"But it is. Either you're on my side…or you're on his."  
  
"I'm not on anyone's side."  
  
He began re-packing. "Then you're not on mine."  
  
"Tyler…"  
  
"I think you should leave," he interrupted, avoiding her eyes.  
  
Victoria watched as her childhood friend finished packing, zipping his bag close. Tyler continued to ignore her as he slung his bag over his shoulder and exited the room.  
  
Victoria followed and they silently parted ways at the bottom of the stairs. Tyler stormed towards the study and Victoria continued outside to her dad's car.  
  
She had tried distracting herself from the conversation with Tyler by cleaning the house all evening. But continued to find herself getting lost in the argument and frustrated all over again. Why couldn't he have tried to understand or let her explain?  
  
After repeating the conversation for the fourth time in her head while eating leftovers for dinner she had decided that an early night was in order.  
  
Which led her to where she was now. Ready for bed, sitting at her dresser with her hairbrush. She studied the blend of dark blonde to rich brown shades as the brush started to glide through her hair, any knots now untangled.   
  
She rose to turn towards her bed and surprisingly there Niklaus was. Casually leaning against her headboard, hands behind his head, an amused look on his face.  
  
Victoria blushed remembering the tipsy words spoken during their time in the woods. Maybe she should have been worried about accidentally inviting a thousand-year-old vampire into her home, but she didn't care. Didn't care about her friend's warnings, about the stories they told or the danger they exclaimed. The only danger she was in was the danger of falling more head over heels for this man than what she already was.  
  
She wordlessly walked towards the bed.  
  
Never taking his eyes off her, he followed her lead and kept the silence. It wasn't until she started to join him on the bed, did he raise an eyebrow. Even when she crawled onto his lap straddling him nothing was said. She lowered her eyes and took a deep breath, making sure this is what she wanted. When she searched her heart all she could feel was a simple, yes.  
  
Niklaus remained like a statue the entire time, hands still behind his head, watching her reaction carefully. It wasn't until she raised her eyes and gave a small smile did he relax and lower his hands to position themselves on her hips. She leaned forward bringing her lips to his, slowly but sure of herself. Niklaus' hands tightened ever so slightly on her waist, while hers were drawn up to his face, clasping the back of his neck.  
  
Victoria's body took on a rhythm of its own, slowly shifting backwards and forwards. Niklaus' body responded in kind. He started with seeking entrance to her mouth and she felt his expert tongue slip in.  
  
Victoria could feel herself get lost in the kiss, as the connection with Niklaus started to intensify. She was acutely aware of the hand now wrapped around her waist pulling her closer, his other hand feeling the soft flesh of her thigh, the friction she was causing between them and growing warmth building inside of her.  
  
He started kissing her neck, causing a soft moan to escape her lips. She could feel how this fuelled his desire through the thin layer of her cotton pyjama bottoms.  
  
It was a few seconds before she realised she had been flipped on her back with vampire speed. But she was quickly distracted from the change in position by Niklaus lips, which had now made its way down her arm and was delicately placing kisses on her wrist and the palm of her hand. His eyes sought hers as he captured her other hand and also brought it to his lips. This time moving from palm downwards. Her heart began to race faster as his lips stilled on the blue vein running down her wrist.  
  
The feeling of his lips on the sensitive part of her skin tempted a darkness in her. A darkness she wasn't ready to dive into.  
  
She leaned forwards, stroking his chin, guiding him until they were upright on their knees and enticing his lips to return to hers. Now that they were on their knees, chests pressed against each other, it was much easier for her to remove his jacket and long sleeve shirt. She took a moment to appreciate the body before her as Niklaus pulled the remainder of his shirt off over his head. She couldn't stop herself from reaching out and feeling his well-defined muscles beneath her fingertips.  
  
She heard a sharp intake of breath as her fingers continued their caress downwards. She pulled her gaze away from V-shape of his hip muscles and up into his bright eyes. His hands were suddenly at the edge of her shirt and began lifting until it was free of her body.  
  
Now it was his turn to explore her body. She gasped at the pleasure that spiked through her as Niklaus caressed, kissed and sucked his way to and around her breasts. The warmth inside of her continued to build, and while Niklaus seemed content taking his time devoting his attention to her chest, Victoria couldn't take it anymore. She wanted all of him. Now.  
  
Her hands successfully unbuckled his belt. She had nearly finished unbuttoning his jeans as well when Niklaus stalled her and looked deep into her eyes.  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
She leaned her forehead against his and spoke clearly, "yes."  
  
Faster than her human eyes could detect, Niklaus moved to be standing at the edge of her bed. He undid the last button of his jeans and slid them down along with his boxer briefs. Wearing nothing but a devilish grin, he re-joined her, laying her down and hovering over her. His lips sought hers, while his hands made quick work of her remaining clothes.  
  
Finally, their bodies joined. Nicklaus' calculated, gentle thrusts increased in tempo in time with the flames building inside of Victoria. She was delightfully burning, gratifying sensations radiating throughout her entire being, from the top of her head down to the tips of her toes. Soon she found that she couldn't control the fire inside her anymore. She was at breaking point, when Niklaus lifted her hips slightly, changing his angle and bringing forth a new inferno of pleasure, pushing her to climax and call out his name. Hearing his name on her lips pushed himself over the edge, and he groaned in response with one final thrust.   
  
Panting, they laid side by side on the bed. Victoria has never felt so satisfied in her life. She realised it wasn't just physically, but emotionally satisfied as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her body against his.  
  
Her mind was clear and carefree as she cuddled up to his side and blissfully fell asleep.  


* * *

  
Three things had surprised Victoria when she awoke Sunday morning. Firstly, she was surprised that it was morning and that she could see the sun was peaking through her curtains. Secondly, she was surprised to find herself under the sheet and blankets, she could have sworn she had fallen asleep on top the bed next to Niklaus. Lastly, her biggest (and most welcoming) surprise was the fact that Niklaus' naked body was still beside her. Under the blankets like she was, sleeping.  
  
Victoria rolled onto her side get a better look at the sleeping Niklaus. She smiled at the peaceful look on his face and was content with studying his features, in particular the smaller details she hadn't noticed previously when she felt his eyes on her.  
  
She could imagine the piercing blue eyes staring at her, but she ignored those, sliding closer to touch the two freckles she had just spotted on his neck.  
  
"Good morning, love."  
  
"Morning," she hesitated slightly, "I thought I might have woken up without you."  
  
"Why would you think that?"  
  
Victoria shrugged, not sure how to explain her insecurities. A few key points of Tyler's argument the day prior echoed in her mind.  
  
Niklaus' gentle fingers pushed her chin upwards so that her eye's met his. "I wouldn't leave you to wake up alone, not after what we shared. This isn't a one night stand or fling for me."  
  
His words were exactly what she needed to hear to eradicate Tyler's voice from her mind. She brought her lips to his attempting to convey a sweet, gentle thank you.  
  
Niklaus got the message loud and clear. Beaming he rolled onto his back, while she rested her head on his chest.  
  
"So sweetheart, it's Sunday morning. What would you usually be doing? If I wasn't here?"  
  
Victoria shifted onto her stomach, "I would most likely be going for a run or maybe going out for breakfast at the Grill with my friends. What would you be doing?"  
  
"Hmm…depends on the city, or century really or maybe the threat at that point in time."  
  
"Do you have a lot of those? People threatening you?"  
  
Niklaus chuckled. "I've been around for a long time love, and someone who lives as long as I have and holds the power I do is bound make a few enemies along the way. Whether it be a slight against someone, a strategic manoeuvrer to attain my goals, a rampant family member, or simply a mistake - there seems to always be a threat."  
  
He looked down at the woman he held in his arms, reaching back out to cup her face, "and now I have a reason to be more…cautious. To be prepared for anything. If it had been you in that car instead of Elena… just the idea makes me…" She heard a soft growl escape his lips. "Let's just say everyone and anyone involved would learn the true meaning of suffering."  
  
"Hey, it's ok. I wasn't, I was with you," Victoria quickly interjected, placing her hand onto his. Her touch diffused the dark look that had quickly formed on his face. It simmered down just as quick, to something more sullen. More pained.  
  
"But what about the next time, a time when I'm not by your side, when I can't protect you, you're just so fragile, so human."  
  
Victoria hesitated, taking in his words. Surely he wasn't implying what she thought. She had to ask. "What are you saying? That you want me to turn into a vampire?"  
  
"No! No, only if that is what you wanted. It's just…I want to protect you and I don't know how to do that without being by your side every second of the day. Which brings its own dangers."  
  
Victoria breathed out a little sigh of relief. She may be falling for Niklaus, but she wasn't ready to even think about a choice like that just yet. She didn't know where her future was going and just wanted to graduate before deciding anything life-changing. Hell, she was even sure which college she wanted to go to yet.  
  
The rest of his concerns, triggered something in Victoria's mind, ' _brings its own dangers_ '.   
  
"Is that why you wouldn't kiss me out the front of Caroline's? You were worried about us being seen together?"  
  
The guilty look on his face answered her questions. "Niklaus…tell me that's not what that was about."  
  
"Well, what if we kept this," he gestured between the two of them "hidden…for now until I figure something out."  
  
Her insecurities flared back up, "a secret, a secret is what you mean." She pulled away from him and removed herself from the bed.  
  
She started pulling on her underwear when she heard him from the bed, "just for a few days."  
  
"I don't like this," she found her pyjama top and pulled that on as well.  
  
Suddenly Niklaus was by her side, "it won't be for long, just until I get my hybrids back and put a few plans in place. A few safety precautions if you will."  
  
Although Victoria raised an annoyed eyebrow at him she felt conflicted. She could see the genuine concern on his face and the scream she had heard through the phone when Stefan had taken Elena had shaken her. But it was another secret between her and her friends, again with the justification of 'protection'.  
  
Niklaus could see the battle in her eyes and decided to try a new strategy to get what he wanted.  
  
"Now, love, come back to bed," he stepped behind her, wrapping one arm around her waist and caressing her neck with the other. But Victoria didn't want to give in just yet. She wasn't finished processing and deciding a stance on the whole secret relationship.  
  
She decided to try and divert his attention to give herself more time. Her phone buzzed (she realised then it had been all morning) providing the perfect excuse, "I really should…go…my phone has been going off all morning…there's probably some trouble, with one of my friends, somewhere."  
  
Niklaus just chucked, "and what trouble could there really be? I mean, I'm the big bad in town and it can’t be about me, because I'm here with you."  
  
"Well. Yes, that's true. But still, I should see what it is." She was just about to go for her phone when she felt his lips on her neck.  
  
"Oh that's not fair," she sighed as it prompted enjoyable memories from last night.  
  
He started to pull her back towards the bed, "I'll tell you about my favourite place in the entire world. The only place I've ever stayed long enough to have any type of routine."  
  
Victoria groaned softly, knowing that the captivating combination of lips and words had won. She had to make a point of repeating, "not fair at all", but let him pull her back to the bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all enjoy this latest chapter! Honestly, I got a bit stuck at some parts in this chapter and felt again a bit nervous about posting. Anyway, thank you so much for all of your comments, kudos' and bookmarks - they really make my day and motivate me to keep writing!


	7. Chapter 7

It was a pleasant day in Mystic Falls, the sun was shining and people were going about their usual business like any other Sunday. But as Victoria walked the few blocks to Elena's house it felt better than a usual Sunday. It felt spectacular. She could have spent hours being wrapped up Nik's arms, listening to him talk about his favourite place in the world, New Orleans. But the apprehension about why Elena had called continued to grow.  
  
Victoria had been relieved when she finally called Elena back and found out that no one was in danger or there wasn't any trouble in town. But instead that Bonnie needed their help to find her mother.  
  
The Gilbert's front door was unlocked, so Victoria let herself in, called out a greeting and found Elena and Bonnie at the dining table, stacks of papers around them.  
  
“Thanks for coming, Vee”  
  
“Of course, Bon!” Victoria sat down at the dining table and grabbed Bonnie’s hand. “Anything to help you find your mum. Where do I start?” She eyed the different stacks of papers.  
  
Elena provided a rundown. “These are the license records all of the Abby Bennett’s in the country, courtesy of Sheriff Forbes. And these papers” she placed her hand on one of the middle stacks furthest from herself “are all of the ones we’ve already looked through. These papers are the ones we still have to go through." She pointed towards the multiple smaller stacks in front of them.  
  
"Wow, you guys have already looked through so many. I'm sorry I didn't get here sooner."  
  
"It's ok, I was calling you pretty early. I should have guessed you would have been asleep, you're just always such an early riser I was hoping you might have been up."  
  
"Umm yeah, I was feeling a bit extra tired this morning…needed a few more hours in bed."  
  
Victoria picked up a sheet of paper from one of the smaller stacks. It was printed on the Mystic Falls Police Department letterhead and included a large photo on the lefthand side and various details on the right, such as name, birthday, race, height and last known address.  
  
“The key part you want to look for is the birthday, she was born in Mystic Falls on the 16th of August 1972,” Bonnie explained in a detached voice. “I have this photo of her” she passed it to Victoria “but it’s from before I was born.”  
  
Victoria nodded, placed the photo back in the middle of the table and started looking more closely at the sheet in front of her. It wasn’t a match. She placed it on the discard pile and grabbed another.  
  
“Is Caroline coming over to help as well?” Victoria asked discarding the 2nd sheet.  
  
“No, she said she was busy. Something to do with her dad and Tyler? Something about the sire bond?” Elena discarded her sheet.  
  
“Oh, Tyler wants to break the sire bond. But how could her dad help?”  
  
“He resisted vampire compulsion without vervain, maybe he knows something Tyler can do to break it.” Bonnie picked up another sheet before continuing, “and I’d try anything to break something like that. I mean who would ever want to be under the control of Klaus.”  
  
There was an awkward pause, that was becoming a common occurrence whenever Niklaus’ name was mentioned around Victoria. What continued to surprise Victoria, was her friend's ability to misjudge her reactions. She likes the guy, but it doesn’t mean her values have changed.  
  
“I don’t think I’d want anyone to have that sort of control over me. Personal freedom is pretty high on my priority list.”  
  
Bonnie smiled at Victoria’s response.  
  
The girls settled into a comfortable rhythm making their way through the piles. Now and then each would check a sheet with Bonnie to see if it was a match, but unfortunately, it wasn’t.  
  
The piles seemed to never end and the girls were about to have a break when the front door opened. Damon Salvatore sauntered in, document folder in hand.  
  
"Abby Bennett Wilson, Monroe, North Carolina. Born in Mystic Falls Hospital, graduated at Mystic Falls High...blah blah blah." He announced as he entered the room. Dropping the folder on the table in front of Bonnie.  
  
Bonnie grabbed the folder, a questioning look on her face.  
  
"A little compulsion helps sped up the research process," Damon admitted.  
  
As Elena and Bonnie reviewed the new sheet closely, Damon's attention turned to the other girl sitting at the table.  
  
"And if it isn't little miss excluded, fancy seeing you here. How’s it going dating a murderous psychopath?"  
  
Victoria narrowed her eyes, Niklaus's request to keep their relationship a secret still in front of mind. "I don’t know what you’re talking about."  
  
By the way Damon smirked, Victoria knew he didn't believe her. Guess it was time to try and change the subject. On a hunch, she posed her own question. "How’s it going hiding a family of originals with your brother?"  
  
Damon's smirk increased, "I don’t know what you’re talking about."  
  
Not that she had been expecting a real answer, but she was still found herself feeling annoyed at his response. Victoria was too preoccupied being annoyed at Damon that she missed the guilty passed between her friends.  
  
"This is her," Bonnie confirmed trying to bring the focus back on her mum and away from original coffins.  
  
Damon was all too happy with the change of conversation. He definitely didn't trust the newest member of the group. "Yep. Road trip. I call shotgun," he brightly stated.  
  
Elena was quick to interrupt, "yea-no, you're not coming Damon."  
  
"Why? I'm the one who found her," he pouted like a child.  
  
Elena sighed, "Damon. Look. Bonnie hasn't seen her mom in over fifteen years. We don't need your snarky commentary narrating the experience."  
  
As Damon and Elena stared at each other, Victoria could see that something was trying to be silently communicated between the two. When her curiosity got the better of her she asked, "What's going on with you guys?"  
  
The smirky Damon returned. "We kissed. Now it's weird." With that mic drop, Damon began to leave shouting, "have a great trip" as he walked down the hallway and out of the house.  
  
Bonnie's and Victoria's reactions mirrored each other. Mouth's opened slightly and shocked expressions. Victoria hadn’t been expecting that. Sure she had seen the chemistry between them last summer at Elena's birthday party but thought nothing would come of it, especially now that guess was back in Mystic Falls. She realised that she hadn't really seen either of the vampire brothers much since learning their secret.  
  
Elena quickly rose from her chair, “We should leave and get on the road, we've got a bit of a drive ahead of us."  
  
Bonnie and Victoria knew exactly what Elena was trying to do and even though they followed her to the car, they both knew the deflection wouldn't last long.  


* * *

  
They were making good time on the road and was only another half an hour from the address listed for Abbey Bennet when Victoria’s phone vibrated.  
  
She smiled as she read the text from Niklaus asking how her day was going and what the super important drama from this morning ended up being. She replied, explaining the search for Bonnie's mother, Abbey, and how they were on their way to a potential address now in Monroe.  
  
She was waiting for a response when Bonnie spoke.  
  
"I just can't believe that I'm actually going to see her. Or meet her. Sort of. Since I don't really remember her."  
  
Elena's expression softened as she saw the nervousness in her best friend, "you don't really talk about her."  
  
"What's to say? She left, never wrote, never called. Not even when my Grams died."  
  
Victoria who was sitting in the middle of the back seat leaned forward to join the conversation. "Why do you want to find her now then, Bon? What's changed?"  
  
Bonnie contemplated what to tell Victoria. She didn't want to keep lying to her but also didn't know how she would react if she found out it had to do with the coffins. She decided on a half-truth.  
  
"I've been having these intense dreams for a few days now. These witch dreams. It's as if my ancestors are trying to send me a message. Telling me I need to find my mum. I don't know, it just feels like something I have to do." After a slight pause, she continued with, "So are we going to talk about Elena and Damon now?"  
  
Elena paled slightly, "I'm not talking about it. He kissed me. It's not gonna happen again."  
  
Bonnie smiled, "I mean...was it good?"  
  
Victoria laughed at Bonnie's line of questioning while Elena just sighed, "it doesn't matter."  
  
This response caused Bonnie to join in with Victoria, "that means it was."  
  
The girls were interrupted by the ringing tone of Bonnie's mobile. Bonnie looked down at the phone lying in the drink holder between herself and Elena. "Oh...It's Stefan."  
  
Victoria thought that was odd, why would Stefan be calling Bonnie she wondered.  
  
"Ignore him. Bonnie, you're about to see your mom for the first time in 15 years. I'm not letting any Salvatore's ruin that moment."  
  
The phone stopped ringing, then immediately picked up again. Elena rolled her eyes and answered it, "what?"  
  
Victoria was surprised at the sharpness she heard in her friend's voice.  
  
"Bonnie, Victoria and I are gonna spend the night at the lake house, while we wait for Sheriff Forbes to give us new addresses."  
  
Elena turned her body closer to the window and whispered, "no, Stefan, I'm not. We need a night off from your insanity." It was closely followed by "well, we're doing everything we can. So, could you maybe not call every five minutes?" and followed by the hanging up of Bonnie's mobile.  
  
Elena placed the phone back in the drink holder and forced a smile, pretending that everything was normal.  
  
But Victoria knew otherwise. She was feeling the familiar sensation of being lied to. “Why are Stefan and Damon so interested in you finding your mother, Bonnie?” She had already started to guess at what the answer was, but couldn't help but ask to hear her friends response.  
  
Bonnie looked guilty. “I guess...I guess it’s because they think that the witch dreams I’ve been having are linked to one of the coffins. That my mum is linked to one of the coffins...one that’s locked.”  
  
Victoria hesitated, at least Bonnie seemed like she was being honest with her. “One coffin...that you’re happy to help them unlock. Why?”  
  
It was Bonnie's turn to hesitate. Before she could respond Elena jumped in, “because if the witches want it open, then that generally means Klaus doesn’t. And I'm sorry, but we’re not really on the whole Klaus bandwagon like you are.”  
  
Victoria carefully thought about her response. “What if it’s locked for a reason, Elena? To stop something or someone much worse from being let loose?"  
  
Neither of her friends responded.  
  
A few minutes later, Bonnie pulled into the driveway of a small house, with a wrap-around porch and beautiful garden.  
  
Bonnie stopped the car and turned off the ignition. They sat in silence for a moment before Elena commented, "cute house."  
  
"Yeah, in the middle of nowhere," Bonnie drying responded.  
  
Victoria placed a comforting hand on Bonnie's shoulder, "are you ready for this?" Even if she was mad at her friends, this still was a monumental moment for Bonnie.  
  
Bonnie gave her a determined smile. They all got out of the car and made their way up the porch steps to the front door.  
  
Bonnie had just rung the doorbell when a boy who looked to be about their age, walked around the corner of the house. He was tall, with an athletic build, close-cropped black hair and wide green eyes.  
  
"Hey, there."  
  
Victoria looked to Bonnie, waiting for her to take the lead. When she realised that wasn't going to happen she stepped forward. "Hey, we're looking for Abby Wilson."  
  
"She's not home. There anything I can do for you?"  
  
Bonnie took this as her opportunity to run, maybe she wasn't ready for this. "It's okay, we can come back later." But Elena was there to stop her.  
  
The boy looked more closely at Bonnie. "I'm sorry, but you look so familiar."  
  
Bonnie froze. "Umm…Abby is my mom."  
  
The boy looked surprised, "Oh...I'm Jamie. You guys wanna come inside?"  
  
Bonnie hesitantly nodded and they followed Jamie into the kitchen. He gestured for them to sit at the small round dining table.  
  
"Would you like anything to drink? We got fresh OJ, coconut water, some mango guava something."  
  
Bonnie answered, "water is fine."  
  
"Cool." Jamie grabbed a few glasses from the cupboard and started filling them at the sink.  
  
"So, are we...like related?"  
  
"Oh, nah. Abby's not my mom."  
  
"Oh, good," Elena whispered under her breath nudging Bonnie.  
  
Victoria rolled her eyes subtly at Elena's statement. Thankfully Jamie didn't notice the exchange and continued talking. "She dated my old man back in the day. He's kind of a deadbeat, so when they broke up she took me in. Put me through school. Didn't freak out when I totalled her car. Twice."  
  
Bonnie grimaced slightly. "She sounds...great."  
  
Victoria heard the squeak of the front door and footsteps leading towards the kitchen.  
  
"Jamie? Whose car's out front?" An older woman who shared a strong resemblance to Bonnie walked into the kitchen.  
  
Bonnie slowly rose from her seat, "that's mine. I'm Bonnie. Your daughter."  
  
Abby's eyes widened slightly.  
  
"Hello, Bonnie…and friends. Would…would you mind giving Jamie and me a moment?" She motioned towards the living room.  
  
Both Elena and Victoria looked in Bonnie's direction, again wanting to follow her lead. This time she responded. "Yes, that would be fine."  
  
Victoria followed her friends into the small, attached living room. They wandered towards the fireplace. Bonnie stopped in front of a picture of Jamie dressed in a graduation gown.  
  
Elena walked up next to her, "how are you holding up?"  
  
"I'll be fine. I'm not here to get my mom back, I'm just here to get her help."  
  
Abby quickly joined them from the kitchen, holding a plate of homemade cookies.  
  
"So I hope you guys are hungry, cause...food has always been my go-to ice-breaker." She placed the plate on the coffee table and awkwardly sat down at the couch.  
  
Abby might have hoped her daughter would join her, but instead Bonnie chose the armchair furthest from the couch.  
  
Victoria decided to stand to the side, leaning up against the doorway to the kitchen. Leaving Elena to take the seat beside Abby, and positioned in the room between mother and daughter.  
  
Victoria noticed Bonnie's little breath of relief, possibly at having a physical barrier between herself and her mother.  
  
Elena looked about the room, "you have a really beautiful home."  
  
Abby smiled, "you're so sweet. Just like your mom."  
  
Elena's full attention turned to Abby, "you knew my mom?"  
  
"Miranda was my best friend."  
  
"So, you had a daughter and a best friend and you still left?" Bonnie wasn't able to hide the frustration in her voice as she tried to figure out her mother.  
  
"My best friend is why I left. Fifteen years ago a vampire came to town. Looking for you, Elena. Looking for the doppelgänger. No one could manage to kill him. So I lured him out of town and cast a spell to desiccate him in a crypt in Charlotte."  
  
"Mikael. He was an Original vampire," Elena assumed. Victoria was surprised at how quickly Elena had come to that conclusion, did Niklaus' father also have something to do with the locked coffin?  
  
"It took every ounce of power I had. Almost killed me. I recovered. But my magic didn't. My powers never came back." There was a part of Abby's expression that showed her sadness, but there was also another small part that looked relieved.  
  
Bonnie could read both expressions on her mothers face, "and neither did you."  
  
"It wasn't that simple."  
  
"It wasn't? You cast a spell, put Mikael down and then...what? You had to teach Jamie how to drive?"  
  
"Bonnie…" Victoria tried to interject and calm her friend, but now Bonnie was angry.  
  
Bonnie jumped up from her seat and started to head for the front door, "this was a mistake. She has no magic. She can't help us."  
  
Abby ran after her daughter and grabbed her arm, "Bonnie, wait, please. Don't go. Talk to me...Please?"  
  
There was a strained silence. Bonnie's weighed up the pros and cons of getting her mothers to help vs staying a moment longer in that house. She decided that the information she was after was worth it. She started back towards the living room, Abby left out a small sigh of relief before returning herself.  
  
Elena caught Victoria's eye, "we'll wait outside and give you time to talk."  
  
Victoria followed Elena lead. They were outside, making their way around the porch and towards the garden, when suddenly Victoria felt herself being grabbed. One hand on her mouth and another around her waist. Before she could even struggle or scream for help she felt a gush of wind and sudden pulling that left her stomach feeling queasy.  


* * *

  
When the motion stopped Victoria opened her eyes found herself somewhere new. She was standing on the side of a small gravel back road, trees around her, a silver car to her right and an unfamiliar blonde man to her left.  
  
Her mind started racing, evaluating her options. Her first instinct was to run, but obviously, this man was something supernatural and would most likely be quicker, also her stomach wasn’t quite ready for running just yet. There’s a car, could she get his keys? Again supernatural, strength, that seems unlikely. The only option she thought could work was a distraction. Distract him and call for help. She looked towards the car, if she could get behind it she could subtlety get her mobile from her pocket and call Niklaus.  
  
She started backing slowly towards the car, “who are you and what do you want?”  
  
He held his hands up as if he was calming a stray animal. “Woah woah, it’s ok. My name is Daniel. Klaus sent me to get you and protect you.”  
  
Victoria hesitated. “Niklaus sent you? How do I know you’re not lying.”  
  
Daniel lowered his hands. A moment later his face transformed. His eyes turned yellow, the black veins (that were starting to become familiar) appeared under his eyes and his mouth opened to show two sets of fangs. Victoria relaxed her stance slightly.  
  
Daniel’s human face returned. “You can trust me, Victoria. I’m here to keep you safe. But I do need to go and complete Klaus’ other instructions and head to the meeting point.” He indicated to the car. “Will you come with me?”  
  
Victoria looked over Daniel’s face, she wanted to trust him, but she had been fooled so many times lately. And that was by people she knew.  
  
“If Niklaus sent you, then you won’t have a problem with me calling him?”  
  
Daniel smiled, no offence taken, “of course. Go ahead.”  
  
Victoria reached into her back pocket and dialled Niklaus' number on speakerphone. He picked up immediately.  
  
“Are you ok?” Niklaus’ urgent question came through the speakers.  
  
“Yes, I’m with a hybrid named Daniel who just grabbed me. He said you ordered him to.” Victoria heard Niklaus’ sigh of relief.  
  
“Yes, Daniel will look after you. I didn’t realize you were going to be there today. It's important that you stay with him."  
  
"What's going on Niklaus?"  
  
There was a slight pause. "It's about the coffins, love. I'm so close and I just need the rest of today to go to plan and I'll have them. I know I will. I'll explain everything when you get home, I promise. But you must stay with Daniel and let him keep you safe."  
  
"Niklaus…"  
  
"I can't let anything happen you, love."  
  
"Okay, okay. I'll see you tonight then. Bye."  
  
Daniel smiled, much more relaxed after hearing Victoria's conversation with his sire, "after you."  
  
Victoria walked towards the passenger side of the car and got in, she was closely followed by Daniel who entered on the driver's side. Daniel almost cheerily started the ignition and began driving to the mysterious meeting point.  
  
"So tell me, where's this meeting point and what's Niklaus' plan."  
  
Daniel chuckled.  
  
"What?"  
  
"I can see why Klaus likes you. I mean I haven't known him that long, but I can already see it, you two together."  
  
Daniel's easy-going nature prompted a small smile from Victoria.  
  
"Thanks, I guess. Now spill."  
  
"The plan is pretty simple. Blackmail Abby Bennet to get her daughter, Bonnie, to tell her where to coffins are stashed. Then meet a few miles outside of town so that she can work her magic so to speak, and she'll tell me where to find the coffins so I can pass it onto Klaus."  
  
"And how are you or did you plan on blackmailing Abby? Bonnie isn't her biggest fan and probably isn't too keen on confiding in her."  
  
Daniel answered as if blackmailing was a common, normal thing to do. "With the one person most important to Abby of course. Jamie. A simple threat to someone's loved one goes a long way."  
  
"What?! How can you be so…blaze about all of this?"  
  
Daniel shrugged. "It's Klaus' orders and if everything goes to plan, no one will get hurt."  
  
Victoria fiddled with her necklace. "Do you mind doing everything Niklaus tells you to? I mean doesn't it bother you to do everything single things he tells you to?"  
  
"Eh not really. Gotta do something so it mose well be this."  
  
"But don't you want your freedom and to be able to do whatever you want?"  
  
"Honestly?"  
  
Victoria nodded encouragingly.  
  
"Klaus gave me a gift. I never have to turn and experience that type of pain in my life ever again. He also made me a part of a pack, provided a roof over my head and put food in my stomach. Not everyone who turns into a werewolf is born into a pack and has people to guide them. To be there for them werewolf or not. Some of us have to figure it out alone and just survive."  
  
Victoria turned his response over in her head for a while. She was struck by how differently Daniel felt compared with Tyler.  
  
"Besides Klaus is a pretty reasonable guy, good even, in his own way. You must know that."  
  
Victoria mind conjured up memories of Nik. The Nik who genuinely listened to Victoria's doubts and frustrations, saved Caroline's life, feared for her safety and broke her friend's curse.  
  
Daniel must have reached the designated meeting point as he slowed and pulled over on the side on the road. He looked at his watch. "Now we wait."  
  
Victoria racked her brain for other curious questions she wanted to ask Daniel. "When we were at Abby's, how did you know to grab me? Instead of Elena? I don't think I've seen you around town before."  
  
"You wouldn't have. But besides a very detailed description from Klaus today on the phone, I would have been able to smell you from a mile away."  
  
"Excuse me?"  
  
Daniel laughed again. "No, not like that. Smell your scent I mean. Any werewolf or hybrid who came across you can smell your individual scent. And your scent is mixed with Klaus' pretty potently, so anyone who's registered his scent would be able to tell that you're linked to him."  
  
"What? How? Why?" Victoria was struggling to put together a question based on this new information.  
  
"It just means that your scent has mingled with his and sensitive places, such as your neck, wrists or…elsewhere cause both of your scents to link together more potentially. Generally, people with linked scents indicate that they're a mated pair and a big off-limits. Besides, it's works that same way with him. I started smelling small snippets of you on him a few weeks ago."  
  
"This is too weird."  
  
Daniel just shrugged again, "it's a werewolf thing. Strong noses and all." He tapped the side of his.  
  
All Victoria could do was laugh and add it to the list of items to process later and discuss with Niklaus.  
  
The conversation turned to more mainstream topics, while they waited at the meeting point. As the time passed, Victoria found herself quite enjoying the company of blonde hybrid.  
  
The sun had already set when Daniel's attention was pulled away from the conversation.  
  
"A car is coming. Stay here, please?"  
  
Victoria reluctantly agreed while Daniel got out of the car.  
  
The car pulled in behind them and once the headlights turned off, Victoria could identify Abby as the drive.  
  
Abby hopped out of the car and strode towards Daniel. Victoria could only make out snippets of a muffled conversation. _Vampire showed up. She won't talk now._ But it wasn't long before someone else got out of the second car. Victoria let out a sigh of relief at seeing Bonnie safe and well. Abby returned to Bonnie and what looked like an intense conversation started between the two.   
  
After a while, Bonnie seemed to give in with a grave nod. A few more words were spoken and Abby made her way back to Daniel.  
  
Victoria couldn't help it anymore, she opened the door and stepped out of the car.  
  
"Did you get all that?" Abby asked as Daniel reached into his pocket to grab his phone.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"So you'll tell Jamie his orders are complete, that he doesn't need to hurt himself."  
  
"As soon as Klaus confirms the information is valid." 

Victoria noted Daniel's unfamiliar tone and how serious it was compared with their earlier conversations.  
  
As Victoria made her way towards her friend, she saw her frantically texting. "Bonnie? Are you ok?"  
  
Bonnie looked up in surprise, "Vee, what are you doing here?" Before Victoria could answer her eyes narrowed slightly. "Wait, are you here with the hybrid? Is this why you came today? To spy on us and help Klaus find his coffins?"  
  
"No! I came to help you find your mum because it's your mum, Bon. I didn't know that the coffins had anything to do with this or that Niklaus was involved. I promise."  
  
"But if you're with the hybrid now, you must have learned his plan. Did you even try to warn me or Elena?"  
  
"How could I, Bonnie? As if Daniel, the hybrid, would have let that happen."  
  
Bonnie seemed frustrated by Victoria's response. "So much for personal freedom," she muttered.  
  
Victoria's eye's widened. "Can't you try at all to understand the position I'm in? I'm trying to be a friend to you and….whatever I am to him. And I'm pretty sure it was my own 'freedom' and decision earlier to let it slide that you and Elena have been keeping secrets. Again… I understand why you thought you had to, but it still hurts Bon."  
  
"I…I don't know what to say."  
  
"Well, I do. I'm going home. Daniel will give me a lift and we'll finish all of this," Victoria gestured in Bonnie's general direction, "another time."  
  
Without waiting for a response, Victoria turned and hopped back into the car. A moment later, Daniel hopped into the driver's side.  
  
"Are you ready to leave?" He asked, his voice returning to a softer, concerned tone, more similar to their earlier conversations.  
  
"Yes, please. Will you take me home? Or do you need to take me to Niklaus?" Victoria guessed it was going to be the later.  
  
"Straight to Klaus I'm afraid, he wanted to make sure you were safe with his own eyes."  
  
"Ok, let's go then." That was another item to add to their list of things to discuss.  
  
The drive back to Mystic Falls was mostly silent. Daniel tried a few times to start a conversation, but Victoria felt too drained from the day to give her responses much effort. Besides what little brainpower she did have left was spent going through the events of the day.  
  
Victoria was wondering how a day that started so wonderful could end up such a mess when they pulled up to Niklaus' house.

As Victoria stepped out of the car, her eye's examined the mansion in front of her. It was as big or possibly bigger than the Lockwoods' mansion. Victoria had just closed the door behind her when she felt a whoosh of air. She wasn't startled when Niklaus appeared before her, one hand on her cheek and another holding her arm.  
  
"Hello, love."  
  
Being in his arms and seeing his relived smile was all it took for Victoria to forget the worries of the day and bring a smile to her own face. Niklaus looked to his left and direction his attention to Daniel for a moment.  
  
"Thank you, Daniel. For everything today."  
  
"You're welcome."  
  
"The others are bringing in the coffins now, can you go help them?"  
  
"Of course," he started walking towards the house.  
  
"Daniel?" Victoria stepped around Niklaus as Daniel turned back at his name.  
  
"Thank you for being there for me today. I really appreciate it."  
  
Daniel smiled and started walking back to the house, "anytime."  
  
Victoria's smiled in response.  
  
She felt Niklaus' hand find her own. He raised it slowly kissing the back of hand followed by her wrist. Victoria raised her eyebrows at the gesture.  
  
“What?” A not so innocent Niklaus asked.  
  
“Oh I know exactly what you're doing and we are going to talk about this wolf stuff another time."  
  
Niklaus chuckled, "you look tired. Would you like me to take you home?"  
  
"You're kidding, right? I want to go see these coffins…your family…that everyone has been fighting over.”  
  
"Fair enough, love. Follow me." Still holding her hand he led her into the house. Victoria barely had time to appreciate the grand foyer and sweeping staircase, before she was brought into a large drawing room and face to face with three coffins. They watched from the doorway as Daniel wheeled in the fourth coffin.  
  
"You did it, Nik. You have your family back." She squeezed his hand. He gave her a strained smile, "unfortunately not all of them. There's one missing."  
  
Daniel cautiously walked towards the pair, curiosity getting the better of him, "will you open the ones you do have?"  
  
"Not quite yet. Not until I find out where the last coffin is."  
  
Victoria was about to question Niklaus further on his reasoning for waiting when Daniel shouted out in pain. His face screwed up in anguish as his body went rigid.  
  
Victoria tried stepping forward to help but was stopped by Niklaus arm. He started pushing her behind him when Daniel gave one last shout of agony and fell to the floor. In the instant he fell, Victoria saw the life drain from his eyes.  
  
She was so focused on Daniels body that she didn't notice the man in the suit standing behind it until an unfamiliar British voice spoke, "so Niklaus…" Her eyes raised and connected with the bloody red ball the stranger's hand. It took her a moment to comprehend what she was seeing when she did she realised it wasn’t a ball, but a heart. Daniel's heart.  
  
She physically had to hold back the scream that threatened to release from her mouth. While Niklaus continued his attempt to place himself strategically between Victoria and the unexpected potential threat in the room, his brother.  
  
"Elijah."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow thank you so much for all your comments, kudos and bookmarks! Thank you for just even taking the time to read this (what seems like to me) silly little story of mine!
> 
> Also thank you for your patience while waiting for this chapter, I know it's been a longer gap between chapters than usual, but I'm aiming to get the next one out a lot sooner (I'm also quite excited that we're one step closer to the ball!).
> 
> Oh, I also got the timing slightly wrong with the events in this chapter and Meredith's date in the last chapter (they actually happen in the same episode), but I think it still all works ok.
> 
> Anyway, hope you enjoyed this one!


	8. Chapter 8

"Elijah," Niklaus gasped.

Elijah Mikaelson, older brother of Niklaus, original vampire and by the limited accounts Victoria had heard, the most refined of the siblings. This seemed to be proving true as he stood there in his suit, calm expression on his face and relaxed pose. The only part out of place was the bloody heart in his hand.

Niklaus remained in front of Victoria, still attempting the impossible. To hide her from his brother's view. But Elijah cocked his head to the side, eyes drawn to the shielded girl with the terrified look on her face. He dropped the heart, causing her to jump.

“Well, what did I miss?”

Niklaus hesitated. Elijah found it odd, his brother was usually so eloquent and easily spoken.

Elijah removed a handkerchief from his jacket pocket and started to clean his bloody hand. “You look surprised to see me. So it wasn’t you who removed the dagger from my chest. I also doubt it was the...girl behind you.”

Niklaus forced a smile, “you look like you could do with a drink.” He gestured to the door at the back of the room, furthest from Victoria. “Why don’t we adjourn to the living room? We have a lot to discuss. Shall we.”

For a moment Niklaus thought it was going to work. However, he was quickly proven wrong when Elijah threw aside the handkerchief and lined up a punch straight for his face.

Niklaus was careful to block his brothers punch while also pushing him back further into the room and away from Victoria. The gap between the Mikaelson brothers and Victoria widened as Niklaus aimed his strike. While Elijah had been intending for pain, Niklaus was more strategic in his manoeuvres.

Victoria backed up against the wall as far away from the fight as possible. Shock and fear caused her to freeze as soon as her back hit the wall.

Elijah got the upper hand on his brother and before Victoria could process what was happening, Niklaus was thrown at full vampire speed through the doors to her right. Glass shattered everywhere. She raised her arm to protect herself, but it was too little too late as she felt small pricks against her cheek.

Nicklaus quickly righted himself on all fours growling, “careful, brother!”

Victoria saw a flash race by her and suddenly it was Elijah on his back on the other side of the room, Niklaus standing over him and coffee table shattered around them.

“You know you have every right to be mad at me. But I kept my word I reunited you with our family,” Niklaus’ smugness was two-fold. First to keep Elijah focused solely on himself and second because he really was a little smug at having gotten one over his big brother.

Niklaus succeeded in gaining his brother's sole attention as his proclamation seemed to give Elijah a burst of energy and help him land not one but two hits and a kick. Pushing Niklaus up against one of the coffins.

Victoria watched still frozen as Niklaus opened the coffin behind him, pulled out a silver dagger and held it against his brother's chest.

“Don’t make me do this to you again Elijah!” Nicklaus roared.

Elijah slowly released his hands from his brother's grip, “use it. I dare you. You’ll have Kol to deal with.”

Nicklaus just as slowly began to shift the dagger away from his brother's chest, this was the moment to win him back. “Mikael is dead.”

Elijah's eyes widened. “What did you say?”

“I killed him. With his own weapon. He’s gone Elijah, forever.”

Elijah pondered his brother's words. Could it be true? “Why then do our family remain in these coffins? Finn for over 900 years, Kol for over a century.”

“Because of Stefan Salvatore. He holds the one thing keeping me from freeing them. There are things you do not know about our past Elijah. Things about our mother's death. Things I never I wanted you to know, but I’m ready to now.”

Nicklaus stepped away from his brother and dipped the end of the dagger in a small ornamental jar. “I only ask you to remember the oath of loyalty you once swore to me.”

Niklaus moved towards the open coffin.

“What are you doing?” Elijah had to hold himself back from stopping Niklaus.

Victoria leaned forward, feeling slightly more in control of her emotions and curious to see what Niklaus was doing. She took a careful step forward as Niklaus slowly slipped the dagger into the chest of the boy in the coffin.

“Always and forever, Elijah. Now more than ever I need you to stand by my side. Be my brother. Help me destroy Stefan and I promise I you our family will be whole again.”

Niklaus turned to close the coffin.

It took only a moment for Elijah to respond. “I will stand by my oath and hold you to your word. But to be clear, Niklaus’, our family will be undaggered and awake together again.”

“Thank you, brother,” Niklaus clasped Elijah’s shoulder.

Victoria took another hesitant step forward, gaining the attention of the elder Mikaelson.

“And what of the girl? How does she fit into all of this?”

Although it scared the hell out of her, she was determined to meet his eyes.

Niklaus flicked his eyes over to her before returning quickly to Elijah. He was careful to control his features as he looked at her. Of course, he had already smelled the blood, and he expected to feel more panicked at seeing it on her. But instead seeing her with her head held high, blood speckled face and brave determination in her eyes rekindled a feeling from long ago. From a time when he hungered for food and bled from punches. He couldn’t yet describe the feeling, but without a doubt, he was proud of his fierce warrior.

“She’s an ally, a friend if you will but nothing more,” he spoke with a forced nonchalant.

Elijah narrowed his eyes slightly. He had seen the way his brother acted earlier, he was lying.

“Well then, while you tend to your...friend. I’ll go feed. And when I return we will talk about the past and our mother.” With a flash, Elijah was gone.

Victoria let out a breath she hadn’t know she had been holding. The sudden exhale left her feeling a bit light-headed. This wasn’t helped by the stinging on her face and now she realised her hands.

Niklaus sped to her side careful not to press against any of the glass. “Let’s get you cleaned up, love.”

Victoria lent on Niklaus for support as he led her through the foyer and up the stairs. They walked down a hallway to the back of the house and into a large master bedroom.

Niklaus gently nudged her in the direction of an en-suite before disappearing. Victoria had time to turn on the light and study her reflection before he returned. There was more blood than she had thought, along with specks of glass in her hair and a gash on her right wrist just below her rolled-up jacket sleeve.

Niklaus returned with a first aid kit. “Now I can heal you with my blood, but I need to get the glass out first. It’ll be much easier and safer for you to heal, but it might sting a little.”

Victoria nodded and turned around leaning up against the sink to face Niklaus. Using a pair of tweezers from the kit, he began removing the glass. Starting with her hands. Even though it did sting, he was methodical and efficient, quickly moving onto her wrist and face.

Once he was sure all glass was removed, he didn't hesitate to bite down on his wrist and offer it to Victoria.

Victoria saw the blood pebble and swell out of the bite. It gave her pause when she realised that she wasn't as grossed out as she would have thought. Sure she was a little, but mainly just curious about what it would be like, whether her experience would be similar to Caroline’s. She reached out to grab his wrist as she had seen Caroline do the night of her birthday. But unlike Caroline, Niklaus tenderly wrapped his other arm around her shoulder and started the stroke her hair.

She latched her lips against his wrist and began to drink. She felt the thick substance slide down her throat, leaving a tangy metallic taste in her mouth. The overall experience was disgusting and prompted her body to attempt to push his wrist away and cough up the blood. However, Niklaus held firm, forcing her to swallow at least some of his blood. Only removing his wrist when she had and the cuts of her face began to heal.

Victoria coughed again at the remaining blood in her mouth but forced herself to swallow this time.

She turned and re-examined her face, using a nearby face washer to wipe away the blood. Underneath her skin was completely healed, not a cut or scar to be found. She wished she felt just as good on the inside as she looked on the outside. But she was exhausted. She glanced at her watch. No wonder she felt tired, it was well after midnight.

"I should get home."

"You need your rest, love. Why don't you stay here instead of trying to sneak in at home?"

"Here? With him," she shivered at the thought.

Niklaus placed his hands on her cheeks and turned her back towards him.

"With me."

Victoria removed his hands and walked past him back into the bedroom. "I don't know Nik, it's been a long day, it's late."

Niklaus rushed to her side, "please, love. If you're here I can make sure you're ok. If you're here I can…"

"Can what Niklaus? Make my decisions for me and keep me at arm's length while you go and chat with your brother as if nothing happened. Like Daniel's body isn't lying two feet away from his heart downstairs!"

"Love…"

"No, Niklaus! He trusted you. You were his pack or alpha I guess, but either way, he would do anything for you not because you ordered him to but because he wanted to!"

The pain Niklaus was feeling was only in part for the loss of his hybrid, it was also for Victoria and what she had been through this evening and likely still to go through. He didn't know how to explain, that yes, Daniel's death was sad, but Elijah is family. And family is always and forever.

"I'm sorry, that this happened. I am. But there was nothing I could do." He reached out to her again, but she avoided his touch.

"And now he's dead." She turned her back on him and saw her conversation escape. "You're right Niklaus, I'm tired and going to bed. I guess I'll see you in the morning."

She ignored him and began undressing. She had just removed her jacket when she heard him storm off and leave the room. She let out a deep breath and as each article of clothing was removed, a mental weight was shed as well.

She pulled back the covers and slipped into the bed in her underwear and plain singlet. The soft sheets felt heavenly against her skin and quicker than she would have thought, she was fast asleep.

* * *

She was dreaming. She knew she was dreaming because she had that muffled sense of not knowing how she got there and she was wearing a long romance novel style nightgown.

Everything started pleasantly. She was sitting in a field, enjoying the sun and the feeling of the grass beneath her. But it didn't last long. The sky began to darken, storm clouds rolled in bringing crackles of thunder with them.

She started to panic, she tried to stand to run but the earth had turned on her. The soft grass she had felt moments before turned into strong vines and wrapped themselves around her wrists and ankles.

A growl in front of her pulled her attention away from the vines. Ahead of her was a werewolf, but it wasn't a regular wolf but a hideous creature from out of a movie. Standing on hind legs, body covered in fur, red glowing eyes, elongated claws and a saliva dripping snarl. It started stalking towards her.

A shriek to her left startled her. In what she could only describe as Dracula, dropped the body of a woman to the ground and also started striding towards her, a blood-covered smirk on his face.

Suddenly there were more monsters in the field, converging on her. A pale girl with long black hair, a lake monster, a scarecrow, a wendigo and so many more. Then they were on her, claws and hands pulling and tugging at her dress and hair.

Her dream self screamed.

Victoria sat upright as her eyes flung open, heart pounding and hands shaking.

"It was just a dream, it was just a dream…" she muttered as she pulled back the covers and swung her legs over the side. She took a moment to calm her breathing and let the images of the nightmare disappear from her mind.

When the memory faded, she got up to open the blinds and let in the sunshine. The feeling of the sun on her skin was divine. All of her felt amazing. Even with the nightmare, she felt more well-rested and energised than she ever had before. She felt like she could run a marathon or climb a mountain.

As she turned from the window she noticed that her clothes weren't on the floor where she had carelessly dropped them the night before. Instead, someone had collected them, washed the blood out, dried then folded and placed them on the bench seat at the end of the bed.

It could have been a maid, but there was something in Victoria that knew it had been Niklaus. She stood in front of the bench and realised stacked next to her clothing were a few new items all in her size.

She was reluctant to wear any of the new clothes, fearing that it would be taken as a sign of forgiveness. Victoria just wasn't ready yet to forgive him, however, she did admit to herself that the clothes gesture, his care the night before and the deeper feelings in her dream had started to melt her resolve.

She decided to stick with her dark jeans, floral patterned singlet (over the plain white one she wore overnight) and converse shoes from the day before. However, she hesitated when she got to her jacket. Next to it was the softest light grey knitted cardigan she had ever felt. The long batwing sleeves and draping past her hips was a perfect fit. She quickly donned it, before finding a brush and some deodorant in the en-suite.

Victoria cautiously made her way out of the bedroom and downstairs. How was she going to find Niklaus in this mansion?

She started towards what she thought was the sound of voices and the living room. To her relief, it turned out to be just one voice. Niklaus' and he was on the phone.

“Do what you have to, but whatever you do remain out of sight. I can’t have Stefan Salvatore catching wind that you’re closer to town.” He looked up as she entered the living room.

“I have to go,” he snapped shut his phone and pocketed it.

Victoria hung back a little, leaning against the couch.

“How’d you sleep, love?”

Victoria slightly shivered remembering her nightmare, she was reluctant to elaborate and wanted to skip past it, “…fine. You?”

Niklaus gave her a curious look, he had heard how restless she had been this morning. He decided to let it slide and shrugged, “wasn’t quite the same, not being in my own bed.”

She snorted as his response, “well if Daniel had just taken me home and hadn’t been ordered to bring me to you then you would have had your bed back.” She froze at having so carelessly thrown Daniel's name around as if he wasn't…dead.

Niklaus noticed the colour begin to drain from her face. He started to step towards her but thought better of it. "Let me get you a coffee," he mumbled as he sped away.

Victoria had just shifted to sitting on the couch when he returned with a large mug. She took it without meeting his eyes. Niklaus lowered himself to the other end of the couch, pleased that the coffee seemed to be bringing back some colour as she drank.

The coffee gave Victoria time to consider how she was feeling and what she wanted. She realised that what she wanted most of all was more information.

"So you're brother is…awake?" Her eye's remained on her coffee as she asked the list of questions in her mind.

"Undaggered would be a more appropriate term."

"And you no intention of daggering him again?"

"The dagger in question seems to be missing. But no, even if I did have it I wouldn't. I don't think it would do much help to the current situation."

"Ok," she paused, "so there's no consequence for murdering Daniel."

Niklaus leaned forward, successfully capturing her gaze. "He's my brother. Yes, Elijah and I have slighted each other and done hurtful things to each other over the centuries, but as my brother, there is nothing unforgivable, especially for Elijah. Who was there and stuck by Rebekah and myself during the beginning of our vampire lives and throughout time."

"But…"

"There's no but, love. Our chat last night proves the fact even further. I shared with him one of the most terrible acts I have done, and he understood. He forgave me as I have him. Because that's the bond of family."

"Your hybrids…your pack"

"Yes, my hybrids are my pack and are important, but family comes first. Family is always and forever."

"What about me then? Where do I and my forgiveness come into all of this?"

Niklaus had been pondering this train of thought for most of the evening and the truth was he didn't yet know. He had never been in this position. Someone who made him want to do better, who's good opinion of him and favour he desired. Even his family barley got that consideration.

"How can I make this up to you? What can I do?"

Victoria sighed, "I don’t know Niklaus."

There was an eyrie silence throughout the mansion as they continued to sit, an arm's length away from each other.

"Where is he now? Elijah?" Victoria cautiously looked around, afraid that somehow that her question would cause him to appear.

"My brother has stepped out this morning. He needed to check in on a few business contacts and feed a bit more, out of town of course."

"What about the rest of your siblings? They remain...daggered?"

"Yes, for now. As you experienced last night, if it's not done carefully it can be quite tense."

She chuckled, tense what an understatement. "But it only needs to be careful, because of the way they were daggered, the way you daggered them?"

"Yes, I'd expect them all to be quite angry at myself when they wake. All except maybe Rebekah. That wasn't my doing but rather Elena's."

"Elena's? How?"

A small smirk appeared on his face, "I believe she was the one to do it herself. In the back too the night of homecoming."

Victoria was shocked. How could Elena do that? Besides the physical barriers, she never would have thought her most caring friend could have been capable of stabbing someone. But it had been an intense evening for her friends and Niklaus it turned out. For Victoria, who had still been blissfully unaware of the supernatural, it has simply been the night she spent hours talking to a mystery man.

The man sitting before her. She resisted the urge to move over and cuddle up in his arms.

"So why wait then? With Rebekah? Why don't you undagger her?"

"I will, soon. Now that I have Elijah's forgiveness, we can plan on how we awaken each sibling and put our family back together."

Victoria hesitated unsure if she should dare ask, "this secret that Elijah has forgiven you for. Will you be sharing it with me?"

Nicklaus looked away. "I want to. But I find myself worried about how you will react."

The expression he wore reminded her of their confrontation on her family porch not that long ago. She saw the same guarded look she had seen the day he realised that she knew. She hated that look, the look that could so easily form into the stranger that was Klaus.

It was her turn to lean forward and grab his attention.

"No matter how confused my feelings are at the moment, I'm still here, Nik. I'm here with you because even though my head is unsure, my heart won't let me leave."

He nodded but spoke solemnly, "as you know my mother was a powerful witch. Once I triggered my werewolf gene after making my first kill, instead of helping me or guiding me, Esther and Mikael decided the only course of action was to curse that side of me. They metaphorically cut me in half and took that side of me, hiding it away. After the ritual I was furious. What gave them the right to do that. Now my father Mikael, who was too strong for me, but my mother. My mother never saw it coming." He paused.

Victoria could feel a tear streak down her cheek.

"I told my siblings that it had been Mikael who killed her. I was so scared they would leave me. But when the others ran, Elijah and Rebekah stayed and helped me bury my mother. I think Rebekah thought that I had stayed to help her, but really it was the other way around."

Victoria suddenly stood, "I need…I need more coffee."

She turned towards the kitchen. She walked through the entrance and towards the coffee pot at the far end. However, instead of getting more coffee, she leaned back against the island bench. She had just needed space. Space for the war that was taking place inside of her.

Her head was screaming. How could she do this? How could she continue to be with this man? Someone who killed his mother?

Her heart fought in defence. He had warned her, the day in the garden, that he had done terrible things over the years and she had still sought him out. Besides, it sounds like this Esther wasn't really a mother to him. Who curses their own child?

He's a killer! Her head continued.

He cares about you! Her heart declared, forcing her mind to remember how gentle he was last night, making sure every piece of glass was removed. Her mind metaphorically snorted in response, glass that was only there because of him and his brother - another killer!

Her heart tried to counter but was distracted by the careful approach of someone else in the kitchen. She opened her eyes and there he was the cause of her battle. Standing in front of her, sadness in his eyes.

“What if... what if I couldn’t do this anymore, Nik? Any of it.”

Niklaus took a deep breath, thinking long and hard before responding. “I...I would leave. I would take my family and leave Mystic Falls.”

He wasn't sure he could do it, his initial instincts shouted no, but he would try. She would be safer without him or his family around (last night was proof of that enough). As long as she stopped being involved in her friend's troubles then she could grow to have a regular human existence. He would leave, but maybe he could keep a hybrid around. Or better yet if he stayed in the U.S., maybe somewhere like New Orleans, then he could always swing by and check on her. From a distance of course and without any interference. And he would know she was safe.

She tried imagining it. Forcing her mind to picture what if she did walk away, from him and all the supernatural drama and dangers in her life. If she tried to go back to a normal life with normal relationships. Did that mean she would have to stay away from her friends as well? From Tyler, Caroline, Bonnie and Elena? Could she cut herself off from the friends she’d known her whole life? She wasn’t sure she could.

But what hurt more was when she thought of leaving him and never seeing him again. Never talking to him, laughing with him or been held by him. The whisper of this morning’s dream filled her mind. She had known all along that the dread and pain she had felt in her nightmare hadn't been caused by the attack, but by her heartbreaking at not being able to say goodbye to him. To tell him what she wasn't ready yet to say out loud.

“Nik,” her voice broke as she reached for him.

He stepped forward wrapping his arms around her. Was this it? Was she going to ask him to leave?

She placed a hand on his cheek and looked into his eyes. “Never leave me.”

The sense of dread lifted from Niklaus as she spoke those words. He leaned in frantic to capture her lips. Victoria responded in kind, eager to have his arms around her again.

She pulled him in tighter, but it wasn’t enough for Niklaus. He lifted her onto the bench and she found that her legs automatically wrapped themself around his waist leaving no space between them.

While he was enjoying the feeling of her lips on his again, there was something else Niklaus wanted to do. He deliberately placed one slow kiss on her jawline, then another on her throat. He pulled one of her wrists towards his lips placed one there as well.

Victoria panted slight, “tell me what this means to you. Tell me why you want to do this.” She nodded towards her wrist.

Niklaus brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, taking a moment to figure out how to explain.

“The man in me wants your heart and soul, while the vampire in me wants your blood. But the werewolf. The werewolf in me wants your body and to claim you as my own.”

There was something in those words the sparked a small flame of desire in her. A desire to claim him as hers.

She placed her hand on top of his and slowly started to raise it. “How does the wolf feel about this?” She placed her own careful kiss on his wrist. Before leaning forward to place more kisses on his neck and collarbone. “Or this?”

Niklaus let out of a soft sigh of pleasure, “euphoric.”

Niklaus re-joined his lips with hers and the tempo began to increase. Victoria wanted him. Wanted to forget about the last 24hours and get lost in him. She tugged at the bottom of his shirt and it was quickly removed. Her new cardigan was pushed down her shoulders and released from around her arms. It was quickly followed by her singlet straps, exposing her bra.

A small moan left her lips as Niklaus focused his attention again on her neck. Her hands began to lose themselves in his hair when she was startled by an awkward “ahem” from behind them.

Victoria froze, while Niklaus just sighed in frustration. He gently pulled her cardigan up around her shoulders covering as much of her body as possible.

"Is this a bad time, Niklaus?"

Niklaus's expression changed to one more closer to content as he stepped around the island bench towards Elijah. Victoria used this time to fix her singlets and make herself more presentable.

"Not at all, brother. I hope everything went well this morning. Got your fill and updated with your business prospects." Although it wasn't phrased as a question, Victoria could almost sense Nik's intense desire to find out what Elijah had been up to.

Victoria slowly lowered herself and turned to face Elijah.

"Yes, well. I've been trying to get up to speed on everything I missed while I was daggered. It seems that you have caused quite a stir with…," he indicated in Victoria's direction, "…your allies friends."

"My name is Victoria Fell."

Elijah started to address her as "Miss Fell" but she continued. "And the hybrid you killed last night was Daniel. He didn't deserve…"

"Enough," Elijah seethed through his teeth.

"Elijah," Niklaus cautioned.

"Niklaus, what Miss Fell here doesn't seem to understand is that this is of little importance. The bigger and more important matter at hand is that of acquiring the last coffin. So," he straightened his jacket, "I have taken the liberty of extending an invitation to the Salvatore's to join of for an evening of true. They will be joining us for dinner and we will sort this mess out like gentlemen."

Victoria nearly scoffed at the idea of Elijah calling himself a gentleman after his actions last night. Elijah must have noticed the bemused look on her face. "Perhaps it would be best if you excuse us, Miss Fell. There is much to do before dinner."

"Of course," Victoria sourly replied. “I should go anyway and see my Aunt.” It was a school day after all and she would need something to cover her absence.

She held her head high as she marched past both Mikaelson's. Niklaus followed as she hurried out the front door.

"Sweetheart, wait."

"I don't know if I can do it Niklaus, I don't know if I can just forgive him like you have."

Niklaus grabbed her hands, gaining her full attention as he turned her towards him.

"Then don't, not yet at least."

Victoria rolled her eyes, "how optimistic of you…I guess I shouldn't really count on your help in an argument with him then."

"I think you're more than capable of standing up for yourself, especially back there with Elijah." He pulled her in closer before whispering, "but I'll always be your backup if you need it."

Victoria smiled, "so I may not have figured out how I'm getting home before storming out of your house."

Niklaus laughed, "you can take one of my cars."

"Because you have so many of those lying around."

Niklaus raised an eyebrow, a smirk growing.

"Of course you do. Sometimes I forget my boyfriend is a millionaire."

He chuckled at her statement.

"What? Billionaire!?"

"No, love. I was laughing because you called me your boyfriend. It just sounds so…inadequate."

Victoria blushed, "well what would you call us then?"

Niklaus cradled the face of the woman in front of him. Long ago he had buried deep the parts of him that cared for others outside of his family circle. There hadn't been anyone in centuries who had sparked anything more in him than lust or flirtation. No one who had cracked his shell. But here was this woman, taking down his walls, one brick at a time.

He was hesitant though to bare his soul just yet, there were still a few bricks holding him back from going all in.

"An epic in the making, love.” He kissed her softly. “But for the meantime, take a car and get where ever you need to get to safety and I’ll talk to you later.”

He handed her a set of car keys and pointed towards a Mini Cooper parked to her right.

Victoria took the keys, a hesitation on her lips, unsure if she was ready to say those three words. Instead, she pulled him into a short but deep kiss. Quickly turning and leaving in the car before she changed her mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If I was a more patient writer, then I probably would have extended Victoria and Niklaus' fight a bit longer - but I'm honestly just so excited to get onto meeting the rest of the Mikaelsons and the ball!
> 
> I hope you all enjoyed reading this one, all of your support is so amazing!!


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